Four people have died after a mob of Trump supporters invaded the Capitol building in Washington D.C. The protestors, a combination of pro-Trump, conspiracy, and militia groups invaded the building as Senators debated November's election that saw Joe Biden elected as the 46th President of the United States.
One woman was killed after being shot multiple times in the Capitol building while three others died of 'medical emergencies', it is as of yet unclear how they died.
Thousands of pro-Trump demonstrators had gathered to hear Trump speak in which he once again told them that the November election was fraudulent and that he had lost the election unfairly. After scuffles outside the home of American democracy, the mob, some armed, burst through the doors smashing windows and knocking over police. They then remained in the building for four hours.
Photographs and video showed protestors with Confederate flags, Trump banners and a variety of flags related to the Q-Anon conspiracy group. The completely unfounded conspiracy theory says that President Trump was fighting a behind the scenes war against a group of satanic-worshipping paedophiles. Neo-Nazi groups were also said to be in attendance. At one point, protestors can be heard shouting 'F- Antifa' and then seen erecting a giant crucifix.
One protestor who entered the building could be seen sitting in the speaker's chair and sitting in the offices of senior political figures, including that of Nancy Pelosi. Many offices were smashed up and ransacked.
While Trump has yet to condemn the riots, senior political figures from across the divide spoke out with disgust and anger that American democracy had been attacked in such a way.
Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said of the riot:
"This will be a stain on our country not so easily washed away. The final, terrible, indelible legacy of the 45th president of the United States, undoubtedly the worst."
Even loyal Trump supporters such as Anthony Scaramucci, a former White House Communications Director for Donald Trump, apologised for his prior support of Trump, saying:
"I have to own this for the rest of my life. I normalised him and went to go work for him. Donald Trump has become a great unifying figure in the United States. We just happen to all be unifying against him. In my 57 years here on planet Earth, I cannot recall a singular moment where I agreed with Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell and Joe Biden at the same time, but I did that today and I attribute that to the actions of Donald Trump."
Both twitter and Facebook have now banned the President from posting on their platforms in the hope that this will stop the spread of misinformation and words that could incite further violence.
The riot came as two elections in the U.S. state of Georgia concluded with the victory of two Democratic candidates, meaning that the Democrats now control both the House and the Senate. When Biden takes the White House on January 20th, it will be far easier for him to pass through legislation and overturn the legislation that Trump had previously passed during his tumultuous four years in office.
The riots will also likely affect the image of the United States abroad and enemies of the U.S. such as Russia, China and Iran will likely seize upon the images as a powerful propaganda coup.
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