At a rally at Pennsylvania's Bethel Park, former US President and Republican leader Donald Trump survived an assassination bid on Saturday. He was targeted by a 20-year-old youth identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, who was gunned down by Secret Service moments after the attack. While Trump survived the shooting by suffering just a trivial injury on his ear, another man lost his life while two others were critically hurt.
According to reports, Thomas Matthew Crooks used a semi-automatic AR-15 rifle to target Trump. The gun was bought by his father at least six months ago, investigators believe.
For the unversed, the AR-15 is a popular gun among the American public. The Guardian labelled the semi-automatic rifle to be "one of America’s most popular, recognisable and notorious weapons." Here are five things to know about the gun that is also popular in video games and action movies.
1. What makes the AR-15, a design originally created for military use, a popular model among America's gun-wielding sects? Last year, NBC News in a report mentioned that it is the rifle's versatility and cachet that made it popular in the United States.
2. The relatively easy-to-use features and customisation options also add to its popularity. They have comparatively little recoil and can be customized with accessories, such as optics, scopes and pistol grips that improve comfort and accuracy, NBC News said.
3. Not very distinct from the fully automatic M-16 rifles supplied for the military, the AR-15 is manufactured by US-based COLT. AR in AR-15 stands for "ArmaLite Rifle", a small arms engineering company, formed in the 1950s, in Hollywood, California. The ArmaLite reportedly sold the AR-15 design and trademark to Colt's Manufacturing Company in 1959.
While it was also originally designed and created for the Army, it was soon copied by numerous manufacturers under different names -- further aiding its popularity and sales.
4. The AR-15 was the go-to weapon of many mass shooters who shocked the US in the past decade. In May 2022, a former student used an AR-15 to shoot dead nineteen children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Similarly, the weapon was also used in October 2017 in Las Vegas, where a gunman massacred 60 people at a music festival, reported AFP. In other words, the AR-15 claimed hundreds of innocent lives across the US.
As of 2023, nine US states including Washington and Illinois have banned semi-automatic rifles including the AR-15.
WATCH | Donald Trump is not the first! A timeline of assassinations/ attempts against US Presidents
5. Compared to handguns, AR-15s inflict much more damage to human tissue. The bullets are fired at tremendous speed and the projectiles disembark as they pass through the victim's body, inflicting further damage. Compared to handguns, this feature makes AR-15 more lethal as victims may die not just due to severe injuries but also blood loss, NBC News pointed out.
What happened at Donald Trump's rally?
Former US President Donald Trump was the target of an apparent assassination attempt Saturday at a Pennsylvania rally, days before he was to accept the Republican nomination for a third time. A barrage of gunfire set off panic, and a bloodied Trump, who said he was shot in the ear, was surrounded by Secret Service and hurried to his SUV as he pumped his fist in a show of defiance.
Trump’s campaign said the presumptive GOP nominee was doing “fine” after the shooting, which he said pierced the upper part of his right ear.
“I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place,” he wrote on his social media site.
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The FBI early Sunday identified the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. The agency said the investigation remains active and ongoing.
Secret Service agents fatally shot Crooks, who attacked from an elevated position outside the rally venue at a farm show in Butler, Pennsylvania, the agency said.
One attendee was killed and two spectators were critically injured, authorities said. All were identified as men.
