In pictures: First anniversary of the US Capitol riot in Washington

On January 6, 2021, a group of Trump loyalists stormed the US Capitol building in Washington, clashing with police, damaging property, seizing the inauguration stage and occupying the rotunda.  The unrest took place after Trump urged his supporters to protest what he claimed was a stolen presidential election. 

They sought to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election by disrupting the joint session of Congress, assembled to count electoral votes that would formalise then President-elect Joe Biden's victory.  President Trump addressed supporters, urging them to go to the Capitol to demonstrate "peacefully." But he also exhorted them to act: "If you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore," he said.

Many people were injured, including 138 police officers. Four officers, who responded to the attack, committed suicide within seven months.

On Thursday, Biden marked the first anniversary of the US Capitol riot, blaming Trump for the violence. Speaking at Congress, Biden held his predecessor responsible for the attack on the seat of American democracy. Biden accused Trump and his supporters for holding a dagger at the throat of democracy with lies that sparked last year's deadly assault, and used the anniversary of the attack as an occasion to warn Americans that the system of government in the country remains under threat. The President set the tone on a day of remembrance that was marked by fiery speeches, moments of silence and anguished accounts from lawmakers recalling the terrifying hours, when the mob laid siege to the Capitol and rioters tried to stop the routine, ceremonial certification of election results.

Meanwhile, in a statement, Trump said Biden used his name during the speech to "divide" America. "Biden, who is destroying our nation with insane policies of open borders, corrupt elections, disastrous energy policies, unconstitutional mandates, and devastating school closures, used my name today to try to further divide America," read the statement.