Report: Authorities Didn’t Take Evidence Seriously Before Capitol Storm “Chaos in Russia Is a Nightmare for Beijing”

According to a parliamentary committee, the US security authorities did not take the information given before the violent storming of the Capitol seriously enough. In the days and weeks leading up to the January 6, 2021 attack, numerous tips were sent to the two central agencies responsible for homeland security, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, according to a report by the Democrat-led Senate Homeland Security Committee , which chairman Gary Peters published Tuesday. However, the authorities were unable to properly assess the seriousness of the threat based on the information and to derive instructions that would have prepared the security forces for the violence.

In December, the FBI received a tip that the far-right group Proud Boys was planning to be in Washington to “literally kill people.” The commission’s investigation found that the FBI had not given serious thought to the possibility that threat actions could actually be carried out. Referring to internal emails, the report also accuses the authority of downplaying the threat situation in general – although there have also been public threats and warnings, for example on social media.

The United States remains concerned about the unprecedented attack on the seat of the US Congress by supporters of then-voted President Donald Trump. Several people lost their lives. The attackers wanted to prevent the confirmation of Democrat Joe Biden’s election victory that day. Trump had previously incited his supporters. (sda/dpa)