At a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, just days before his confirmation as the Republican presidential nominee for the third time, Donald Trump survived an apparent assassination attempt. A barrage of gunshots caused panic in the crowd, and Trump, his face bloodied, was quickly surrounded by Secret Service agents.
“I knew immediately that something was wrong when I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin," Trump wrote on his social media site after the incident, which became fodder for mainstream media.
Social media has since been abuzz with netizens commenting on the assassination attempt and drawing comparisons to the actions of Trump and other US presidents. Many pointed to the US-backed war in Gaza, noting that the attack on Trump came hours after a massacre in Khan Younis, Gaza.
Dan Cohen, a journalist and filmmaker, reminded people of Trump’s actions as president, including ordering the assassination of Iran’s top anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani in January 2020. “As president, Trump was mostly faithful to the permanent war uniparty's agenda. He ordered the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, sanctioned Russia, sent lethal weapons to Ukraine, and escalated the cold war with China,” Cohen wrote. “The US has no problem assassinating foreign political figures deemed a threat to its agenda. Only the most naïve and ignorant people think that can't happen at home.”
Veteran journalist Elijah Magnier drew a parallel between the attempt on Trump and the daily violence faced by Palestinians in Gaza. “Donald Trump got a bullet through his right ear, and the shooter was killed, and the world was hit by a tsunami,” Magnier wrote. “The Palestinians get thousands of bullets every day, and the shooters are free, supported by the West, and the world doesn't move an inch.”
Social media influencer Sarah pointed out the media's focus on Trump over the violence in Gaza. “Mass media is more concerned about Trump being shot in the ear than the 400+ Palestinian civilians murdered and maimed by Israel in Gaza today,” she wrote. “Tells you everything you need to know.”
Lebanese academic Denijal Jegic called out the double standards of the “collective West” regarding the Trump incident and the genocide in Gaza. “The collective West is expressing ‘thoughts,’ ‘shock,’ and beautiful wishes to Trump while continuing to massacre more than 180,000 Palestinians in Gaza. Also, no contradiction here,” he wrote, sharing screenshots of tweets by top world leaders over the Trump shooting.
Chinese journalist Chen Weihua expressed “shock” over EU leaders responding “more swiftly and strongly” to the assassination attempt on Trump than to the mass killings of Palestinians in Gaza.
Writer and activist Eva Karene Bartlett said the incident involving Trump has garnered and will continue to garner more media coverage and outrage than nearly 300 days of genocide in Gaza. “I would add, you reap what you sow. Any chaos in the US that may ensue is what the US successive regimes and deep state have fomented globally for almost 200 years of savage neocolonialism that has slaughtered millions,” she wrote.
Lebanese journalist Sharmine Narwani found it “amusing” to hear Americans express outrage over assassinations in response to the news about Trump’s assassination bid. The attempt came hours after close to 100 Palestinians were killed in a missile strike in Khan Younis, an area crowded with over 80,000 displaced people.
In the past nine months, almost 38,500 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli-American war against Palestinians in the besieged territory.
