International
'Officer dies following clash with pro-Trump mob'─── 11:37 Fri, 08 Jan 2021
A US Capitol Police officer has died of injuries sustained during clashes with a mob of President Donald Trump's supporters who overran a session of Congress, police said late Thursday.
It was the first law enforcement death stemming from the violence at the Capitol on Wednesday which saw flag-waving crowds overwhelm police and break into the legislature.
Four protesters died, including a woman who was shot by police. Three other deaths were reported on the Capitol grounds, but the circumstances remained unclear.
Officer Brian Sicknick, a 12-year veteran of the force, was "responding to the riots on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, at the US Capitol and was injured while physically engaging with protesters," Capitol Police said in a statement.
"He returned to his division office and collapsed. He was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries" on Thursday night, it said.
CNN reports Sicknick is the fifth person to die as a result of Wednesday's insurrection. One woman was shot and killed by Capitol Police as the crowd breached the building and three others suffered medical emergencies that proved fatal.
ABC News reports law enforcement said more than 50 Capitol police and Metropolitan police officers suffered injuries in the rioting, and "several USCP officers have been hospitalised with serious injuries."
"These individuals actively attacked United States Capitol Police Officers and other uniformed law enforcement officers with metal pipes, discharged chemical irritants, and took up other weapons against our officers," the USCP said in a statement. "They were determined to enter the Capitol Building by causing great damage."
Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund resigned on Thursday afternoon in the wake of the riots. Several prominent people had called for him to step down, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the head of the police union.
Capitol Police Union Chairman Gus Papathanasiou said in a statement Thursday that officers were "frustrated and demoralised by the lack of leadership."
"We have several protesters dead, multiple officers injured and the symbol of our Democracy, the U.S. Capitol, desecrated. This never should have happened," Papathanasiou said in a statement.
