Former US President Donald Trump has said he will hold a news conference on January 6, on the first anniversary of the riots that attacked the Capitol to protest his electoral loss, repeating unfounded claims about election fraud.
With a congressional panel investigating the riots seeking answers from several of his associates, a defiant Trump slammed the committee on Tuesday, calling the attack on the Capitol a “completely unarmed protest of the rigged election”.
Trump’s supporters had violently breached the Capitol on January 6 to prevent the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory, halting procedures and sending lawmakers into hiding. Five people, including a Capitol police officer, died during or in the aftermath of the incident.
Brian Sicknick, the officer, had confronted protesters, but authorities say he died of natural causes after suffering two strokes. One of Trump’s supporters was fatally shot on the day as she attempted to cross into a restricted area inside the Capitol.
Democrats have said the riots amount to an insurrection that aimed to violently reverse the election result and keep Trump in power. The House of Representatives impeached Trump in his final days in office, accusing him of inciting the violence.
