Trump Compares Chicago Violence to Afghanistan After 64 Injuries and 13 Deaths During Weekend Shooting
President Donald Trump condemned Chicago and its violence on Monday after 64 people were injured, with 13 killed in various shootings. The Republican leader said the city's violence was worse than Afghanistan.
Trump made the comments during a roundtable with law enforcement officials at the White House. He also asserted his opposition to defunding police and slammed Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden for supporting police reform.
In June, the president sent a letter to Chicago's Mayor Lori Lightfoot, urging her to take action on the city's waves of violence. In the letter, he said the official's lack of leadership is failing the city's residents, NBC Chicago reports.
What happened in Chicago?
Officials in Chicago reported 64 people were shot, 13 fatally, in multiple incidents across the city during the weekend. Among those killed was 15-year-old Terrance Malden, who was killed on July 10 on the South Side. He became the first victim of the weekend, The Epoch Times reports.
On July 13, Shamari K. Smith, 27, was shot and killed by an unidentified person who quickly escaped the vehicle scene. An hour after he was dead, a 26-year-old male was fatally shot in the Lawndale neighborhood.
On July 12, unidentified shooters opened fire at a vehicle parked in the West Englewood neighborhood. A 14-year-old boy, a 17-year-old male, and a 20-year-old man sustained injuries from the shooting. The two teens were rushed to the hospital and given medical treatment. However, the 20-year-old died from the shot.
Around midnight the same day, a 15-year-old girl was shot as she and a 29-year-old man were standing on the West Side's sidewalk. The girl sustained gunshot injuries to the calf, knee, and shoulder, while the other victim was hit in the calf. Both victims were hospitalized and in good condition.
Over the Independence Day weekend, over 79 people were shot, 15 of whom died from sustained injuries. During last year's Independence Day weekend, 32 people were shot, with nine killed.
What happened in Afghanistan?
On Monday, the Taliban forces launched an assault against an intelligence complex in Afghanistan. The attack left at least 11 people dead and 60 others injured.
According to a report by The New York Times, the insurgents planted and detonated a car bomb at the country's National Directorate of Security entrance. The blast struck a nearby municipal compound. It also opened a path for the fighters to enter the complex where they exchanged fire with the Afghan forces for hours.
A report by the province's deputy governor, Sefatullah Samangani, said only 15 of the 63 wounded victims were intelligence officers. The rest were civilians.
The attack breached a preliminary peace deal between the United States and the Taliban. It also broke the Taliban's streak of violence in the countryside - crimes they did not claim.