Uganda President Yoweri Museveni has joined a growing list of world leaders in condemning Saturday’s attempted assassination of former US President Donald Trump.
Trump was almost taken out by an assassin’s bullet as he addressed a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The Republican presidential candidate for the November 5 polls had his ear grazed by a bullet when shots rent the air at the rally.
A spectator was, however, not so lucky as he was hit and died.
In a statement, Museveni conveyed “deep and heartfelt sympathies” to Trump on his and the country’s behalf.
“At the same time, I condemn this despicable and cowardly assassination attempt that put his life and that of his supporters at risk. I also extend my deepest condolences to the family that lost their loved one,” Museveni said.
Twenty-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks was identified as the shooter.
He was shot dead by the Secret Service seconds after the attempted assassination from the rooftop of a nearby building, some 150 meters away from the Trump event.
“As freedom fighters and peace-lovers, we condemn political violence because it threatens democracy wherever it manifests. I wish His Excellency and all those injured a speedy recovery. Our thoughts and prayers are with them,” Museveni said.
US President Joe Biden condemned the attempted assassination of his competitor at the forthcoming polls saying there’s no place for violence in American history.
“We cannot, we must not go down this road in America. We have travelled it before throughout our history, violence has never been the answer,” Biden said in a video message to Americans.
He made reference to previous assassinations of US presidents, an attack on the spouse of former US Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and the January 6, 2021 attack on Capitol Hill in an attempt to overturn the 2020 US presidential election.
“There’s no place in America for this kind of violence or for any violence ever. Period! No Exceptions. We cannot allow this violence to be normalised,” Biden affirmed.
His predecessor Barack Obama echoed the sentiments.
“President Biden is right; there is no place in America for this kind of violence. As a country, we may not agree on everything, but we should be able to agree on that,” he said.
