Arlington National Cemetery confirmed Tuesday that an incident occurred when former President Donald Trump visited the cemetery Monday to commemorate the third anniversary of the Abbey Gate attacks in Afghanistan.
“We can confirm that an incident has occurred and a report has been filed,” the statement said.
“Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, including photographers, content creators, or other individuals present for purposes of, or in direct support of, the campaign of a partisan political candidate,” the cemetery in the Virginia suburb of Washington said. “Arlington National Cemetery has reinforced this law and its prohibitions and shared them broadly with all participants.”
Trump took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Monday, marking the third anniversary of the deaths of 13 U.S. service members in an attack by the Islamic State outside Kabul airport in Afghanistan. More than 150 Afghans were also killed. Parents of fallen service members have expressed anger over the lack of responses from President Joe Biden’s administration over the attack.
After the ceremony, Trump went to Section 60 of the cemetery, where some of the service members who died in Afghanistan and Iraq are buried. Normally, there are strict restrictions on filming there.
NPR first reported Tuesday that two Trump campaign staffers had “a verbal and physical altercation” with a cemetery caretaker who tried to prevent them from filming.
The statement from Arlington National Cemetery did not confirm these details.
Steven Cheung, Trump’s communications director, denied some of the report’s details and said the campaign was prepared to release footage to support its claim.
“There was no physical confrontation as described and we are prepared to release footage if such defamatory claims are made,” Cheung said in a statement. “The fact is that a private photographer was allowed onto the premises and for whatever reason an unnamed individual, who clearly suffered from a mental illness, decided to physically block members of President Trump’s team from attending a very solemn ceremony.”
Cheung indicated in a statement to X that Trump had permission to bring a photographer.
Chris LaCivita, Trump’s co-campaign manager, posted a video on x showing Trump laying flowers at a grave.
In a statement, he said a “despicable individual” had physically prevented Trump’s team from accompanying him to the event.
“For a despicable individual to physically prevent President Trump’s team from accompanying him to this solemn event is a disgrace and unworthy of representing the hollow grounds of Arlington National Cemetery,” LaCivita said. “Whoever this individual is distributing is discrediting the men and women of our armed forces and disrespecting all who paid the price to defend our country.”
LaCivita claimed that Trump attended Section 60 at the invitation of the Abbey Gate Gold Star families “to honor their loved ones who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.”
Trump stirred controversy this month when he said the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a civilian award, was “better” than the highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor, because those who receive the Medal of Honor are often dead or wounded.
Trump has previously faced criticism for a 2020 report in The Atlantic, later confirmed by former White House chief of staff John Kelly, that alleged he made disparaging comments about fallen soldiers, calling them “suckers” and “losers.” Trump has denied the allegation.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
