Credits: ABS-CBN News
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. joined world leaders in condemning the shooting of former US President Donald Trump at a political rally in Pennsylvania on Sunday — Saturday in the US — expressing relief that the Republican presidential candidate is safe and recovering.
Marcos’s statement echoed sentiments from US President Joe Biden and other political figures in the US, who decried the attack and emphasized that “there is no place in America” for political violence.
“Together with all democracy-loving peoples around the world, we condemn all forms of political violence. The voice of the people must always remain supreme,” Marcos said on social media. “It is with great relief that we receive the news that former President Donald Trump is fine and well after the attempt to assassinate him. Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family,” he added.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer expressed his horror at the event, saying he was “appalled by the shocking scenes” of the shooting. “Political violence in any form has no place in our societies and my thoughts are with all the victims of this attack,” he wrote on social media platform X.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also condemned the act, stating that political violence is “never acceptable.” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed his prayers for Trump’s quick recovery and emphasized the need to “stand firm against any form of violence that challenges democracy.”
Global leaders’ expressions of concern followed the assassination attempt on Trump at the rally, which left one attendee dead and two others critically injured. The violence has sent shockwaves around the world.
Trump’s campaign reported that the presumptive Republican nominee was doing “fine” after being swiftly removed from the stage, despite the shooting grazing the upper part of his right ear. The Secret Service stated that the suspected shooter, who attacked from an elevated position outside the rally venue, was killed at the scene.
U.S. authorities are continuing to investigate the incident.