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Special Coverage Of Violent Riots At U.S Capitol

Rioters gather outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
Tasos Katopodis
/
Getty Images
Rioters gather outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in Washington, D.C.

Update: Special coverage has ended. Follow updates here.

Violent pro-Trump extremists stormed the U.S. Capitol after demonstrations Wednesday in Washington, D.C., prompting the Capitol Police to lock down all building within the U.S. Capitol complex.

Listen to NPR's live special coverage on this page, on your local member station or on NPR One.Follow more updates on NPR.org.

Police have alerted individuals in the Capitol to shelter in place, citing a "security threat inside the building."

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered a citywide curfew from 6 p.m. Wednesday until 6 a.m. Thursday.

The riots came hours into a joint session of Congress to ratify President-elect Joe Biden's 306-232 Electoral College win over Trump.

Ahead of the violence, Trump addressed his cheering supporters and urged them to march to the Capitol, once again baselessly alleging widespread fraud that rigged the election against him. His supporters later pushed back against security barriers and forced Congress into a recess while members, staff and press took shelter.

In a tweet, Trump called on his supporters to "remain peaceful. No violence!"

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Barbara Sprunt is a producer on NPR's Washington desk, where she reports and produces breaking news and feature political content. She formerly produced the NPR Politics Podcast and got her start in radio at as an intern on NPR's Weekend All Things Considered and Tell Me More with Michel Martin. She is an alumnus of the Paul Miller Reporting Fellowship at the National Press Foundation. She is a graduate of American University in Washington, D.C., and a Pennsylvania native.