Motives of suspected Washington gunman under scrutiny

0:00This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Hey, Chicagoland. Wayday. Wayfair's biggest sale is on at a Wayfair store. And you can score up to 80 % off everything home in person. Shop Wayday now through April 27th at the Wayfair store at Eden's Plaza in Wilmette. Wayfair, every style, every home. What makes people want to believe in aliens? I'm Tristan Redmond, one of the hosts of the Global Story podcast from the BBC. Donald Trump last week announced that he'd be releasing the US government's UFO files. So why the renewed interest in life out there? And what deeper spiritual meaning might people be searching for?

0:42Check out The Global Story, We Are Serious Journalists, on bbc.com or wherever you get your pods.

0:59As of Monday, the 27th of April, these are our main stories. The latest on the shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. Donald Trump has reacted angrily when asked about the shooting suspect's alleged manifesto. We also hear from the journalist who was sitting next to the U.S. president when the shooting happened. And Mali's defense minister has been assassinated in a car bomb attack, part of a wave of jihadist and Touareg separatist-led violence sweeping the country. Also in this podcast... An historic performance! 159.30. Absolutely incredible. I've never seen anything like that. What a finish.

1:39A big day for the London Marathon as a Kenyan athlete smashes the world record.

1:48Our top story. More than 24 hours on from a believed assassination attempt on the US president and his cabinet. The third time Donald Trump appears to have been targeted in less than two years. Look at the questions being raised about the suspect behind that attack and how he might have got past security. This latest violent episode happened at one of Washington's glitziest annual events, the White House Correspondents Dinner. A suspect, Cole Thomas Allen, will appear before a D.C. court on Monday morning local time. We'll hear more details about him in a moment. But first, in an interview with American media, Donald Trump has said he wasn't worried during the believed assassination attempt on him and his cabinet during the Saturday evening event.

2:33In an interview with CBS correspondent Nora O'Donnell, he said his curiosity to see what was happening probably slowed the Secret Service's efforts to rush him to safety. Mr. Trump then reacted angrily when Ms. O'Donnell read out portions of a manifesto allegedly written by the gunman that appeared to refer to the president as a rapist. The so-called manifesto is a stunning thing to read, Mr. President. He appears to reference a motive in it. He writes this, quote, administration officials, they are targets. And he also wrote this. I am no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.

3:15What's your reaction to that? Well, I was waiting for you to read that because I knew you would, because you're horrible people. Horrible people. Yeah, he did write that. I'm not a rapist. I didn't rape anybody. I'm not a pedophile. Do you think he was referring to you? Excuse me. I'm not a pedophile. You read that crap from some sick person. I got associated with stuff that has nothing to do with me. I was totally exonerated. Our North America correspondent is Peter Bowes. I asked him, what do we know about this alleged manifesto? It is an alleged manifesto. We haven't been able to independently verify these writings, but it has been widely reported and you've just heard some questioning about it.

4:01We also understand from US officials that in this manifesto, he had essentially set out who his targets were, and that they were senior members of the Trump administration. And certainly, leading officials have said that they understand that to be Donald Trump and his closest officials. Now, we know that Donald Trump and his vice President, the First Lady, were all present at this event at the weekend, along with many other members of the Cabinet and indeed members of Congress as well. And these are the details that are in these writings that I think clearly are going to be part of the investigation, which the authorities say clearly is still in the very early stages.

4:50And Peter, serious questions are also being asked about how would-be attackers keep getting past security cordons. But the president himself has been defending the security arrangements that were in place. Defending it, he says, because the alleged attacker in this case did not get into the room. In fact, he didn't even get to the floor where the ballroom is. So he was still some distance away from the room itself. And for that reason, he says that security actually worked, although clearly questions are being asked about the fact that someone with a gun was in the building with the president there and the vice president and other senior members of the government.

5:33And that is what is concerning a lot of people. And the president has referred to the fact that this was a working hotel. Now, this place has been used for decades for this particular correspondence annual dinner, White House correspondence. But he says it's a working hotel. There are many people in the rooms above the ballroom who have nothing to do with the event, but clearly have access to the building. So that could be a potential hole in the security and is potentially something they'll be looking at in the future. And just briefly, Peter, there are plans to have another White House Correspondents' Dinner?

6:07The President's been talking? Yes, he's been saying that he would like to see it happen within 30 days. He added that he would like to see it with some additional security, especially around the perimeter, which does seem to have been the major criticism of what happened on Saturday, that this person was able to get through a perimeter if indeed that kind of thing existed as far as a security cordon was concerned. So I think he wants to see more layers of security around the building. Peter Bowes. The suspect, 31-year-old Cole Thomas Allen, is from Torrance, a Los Angeles suburb, where he's reported to have worked as a tutor.

6:47Our correspondent, Reagan Morris, spent most of the day outside his home. She joined us from Torrance. The FBI descended on this neighborhood, on this house. Neighbors said there were three helicopters up from news media and law enforcement. There was a huge law enforcement presence and the FBI going through the house. And since then, it's just been chaos with media. We're all sort of out here talking to the same neighbors. Many of them don't want to speak to us. Some of them were happy to speak to the BBC, but not local news because they don't want to be on locally. But they'll talk to us. And some details emerging about the suspect himself and real shock for some of those who knew him.

7:25The authorities say they believe that Cole Allen traveled by train from here in Torrance to Washington, D.C. That's almost 3 ,000 miles. And that's a journey, you know, we don't have very fast, efficient, high-speed trains here in the U.S. So it's a journey that would take several days. But it also is a journey that allows you to bring weapons undetected. We understand that he legally did own some firearms. We're hearing that this man, he was 31 years old, he has one of the best educations that money can buy in the United States. He went to one of the most prestigious colleges, has a degree in engineering from Caltech.

8:02and then apparently he has an advanced master's degree. So he's very well educated. He was working, according to his LinkedIn social media profiles, he was working as a part-time software developer, video game developer. And he also worked as a tutor in one of these education centers that high school teenagers go for tutoring help with physics and math and to prepare for their own exams. So, you know, we've heard from some people who had been tutored by him. We spoke to some of the neighbors and across the board, you know, People say he kind of kept to himself, but he was a nice guy. He was quiet.

8:35People are really shocked. He seemed like a very ordinary person. You know, it's just you never expect it coming from this guy. He was a nice guy, down to earth guy. I got a lot of help in my physics homework and prepared for tests with him, as well as one of my other my other buddies. So, yeah, you know, it's just something you never expect. And Reagan, as you mentioned, he traveled by train for days to get to his destination. So this wasn't a spur of the moment decision. This seems like it was a planned event. And, you know, a lot of the details we're going to hear more and more when he's formally charged on Monday.

9:08We'll definitely learn more. But President Trump himself was doing some media interviews where he said that before Cole Allen allegedly stormed into that Hilton hotel lobby, President Trump said that this young man alerted his family and that the family indeed are the ones who called police. You know, a lot of these details we have not been able to independently verify, but I know that we are going to learn many more details when he's formally charged Monday morning in Washington. Reagan Morris in California. Well, we've heard many journalists who were in the same room as President Trump give their accounts of what happened at the Washington Hilton Hotel.

9:47But one correspondent was in a unique position. Wei Jiayang from CBS News also functions as the president of the White House Correspondents Association. She was sitting next to Donald Trump on the stage at the event. This was a big moment for her. This was the first time he had agreed to attend the dinner as president. Also, Wei Jia and the president have had some tricky exchanges in the past. During the COVID pandemic, he abruptly brought a news conference to an end when he was annoyed by one of her questions. Wei Jia was interviewed on CBS's Face the Nation by Margaret Brennan on Sunday. Here's what she told her about Saturday's dramatic events.

10:25When we were still on stage, we were in the middle of a very light moment with the entertainer who was doing a trick. And when I heard something in the audience, I thought it was a protester or something we're very used to. But then when I saw SWAT team members come to the head table and rush us to the ground and say, down, down, down, we were crawling off the stage. And in the back, that is a holding area where people wait, including President Trump and distinguished guests to go onto the stage. And we were sitting there and I saw more than a dozen SWAT officers. There were members of the Secret Service milling about.

11:09There were members of the president's team. And as you can imagine, a lot of conflicting information because it had just unfolded. I will say it was remarkable to see that in action and to understand it was their quick work that protected all of us that night. But obviously, it was a tough situation for everybody that was there, including you. You were very stoic, though. You had to go out. You had to talk to everyone. Your seven-year-old daughter was there. Your parents were there. Your husband was there. How are you making sense? Is that how you, I think, we're processing this still. I think we're all processing it.

11:45I have covered countless shootings and murders and terrible things in my career. And this is the first time that I've been on the other side of a potentially violent and deadly situation. And no amount of reporting can prepare you for that. You're right that my family was in the audience and it was incredibly meaningful to have them there. And so that added an additional complicated layer because I'm thinking about the safety of my members, the safety of all of our dinner guests. And obviously at the forefront, the safety of the people who I can see who matter the most to me. And we didn't have information.

12:30So when I was in the back, I didn't know if there was an active threat. I was watching the monitors and keeping my eyes right on their table. but at the same time trying to find more information so I could share it with everyone in that room. And President Trump called me to his holding room and briefed me before he sent out a post about the dinner being, in his words, postponed and that he was going to have a press conference. And he really wanted to talk it through and to explain that he himself realized how important that night was. It's something we do every night. And when I did address the room, I reminded everyone that the freedoms that we are celebrating tonight in the First Amendment are still incredibly fragile.

13:23And I appreciate that the president acknowledged that. Wei Jiajian from CBS, the president of the White House Correspondents Association. The commander of Ukraine's drone forces has told the BBC that long-range attacks on Russia's oil export facilities are legitimate military targets and will escalate after weeks of strikes deep inside Russia that have severely disrupted its energy exports. Speaking in a rare interview, Robert Brovdy said Vladimir Putin earned blood money on oil exports, which he then spent waging war on Ukraine. The commander also said that his forces were currently stalling Russia's advances along the front line.

14:05Our Eastern Europe correspondent, Sarah Rainsford, travelled to meet the drone commander and his troops.

14:15We've just pulled up by the side of a road in the middle of a field somewhere in eastern Ukraine. We've come in a convoy of soldiers and they're just getting into position because tonight they're going to be launching drones deep into Russia. The location is top secret, and Yuki, one of the soldiers, tells me they have to work fast. Our centre is like a red rug to our enemy because we're bringing the war to their territory.

14:50Those drones revving their engines look like big toy planes, But this model can fly more than 1 ,000 kilometres. And Ukraine has others now that go twice that far. For weeks, they've been hitting oil facilities deep inside Russia. The team are ready now for the launch, just waiting for the signal.

15:23we've met some contacts here who are giving us a ride in a minibus with completely blacked out windows not even a crack to see where we're going to meet Robert Brogdy he's the commander of Ukraine's drone forces. And we've just emerged into the command centre. Banks and banks of screens in every direction.

15:51Four years ago, Robert Brovdy was a grain dealer and an art collector, more comfortable in Sotheby's than in the trenches where he's since found himself. That's where, he tells me, he first used a drone. He was under fire and needed to see where the Russian forces were and remembered a device that he'd bought for his children. Soon, he was attaching munitions to ever more advanced drones. Brovdy now heads all Ukraine's unmanned systems forces. So there seems to be this new focus on deep strikes in Russia. Can you tell me why? What's the thinking?

16:28Putin extracts natural resources and converts them into blood dollars that they can then direct against us in the form of shahit drones and ballistic missiles. If oil refineries are a tool to convert resources into money that's used for war, then these are lawful military targets subject to destruction.

16:55The internet is full of video clips of the results. Giant orange walls of fire. Brovdi's bunker, though, displays other videos on a loop. Set to music, they show drones chasing Russian soldiers on the front line. It is brutal stuff. But for Brovdi, reducing Russia's manpower advantage is the second priority. And for four months, he says, Ukraine has been killing more soldiers than Moscow has mobilized for the fight. 30 % of all drone strikes by the unmanned forces must be against military personnel. So there's like a kill plan, basically, for Russia? Yes, you can call it a kill plan. And right now, we are exceeding that.

17:46The greatest mass killing of an enemy in the history of mankind is taking place in this room by plastic and metal drones that cost from 300 to a few thousand dollars. They are the main tool of influence on the battlefield. And he tells me his drone forces have already stopped the Russians advancing along most of the front line.

18:14And the long-range launches continue. Brovdy doesn't talk of defeating the enemy, but of defending what Ukraine still holds with minimal losses to its own troops. And by taking the war to Russia with these deep strikes, he also wants to eat into Russians' morale and make more people there question the war they're fighting and Vladimir Putin, who led them there. Sarah Rainsford in eastern Ukraine. The military junta in Mali has confirmed that the defence minister was killed on Saturday during widespread attacks by jihadist militants and separatist fighters. A statement on Sunday evening said General Sadio Kamara died in a suicide truck bombing at his residence near the capital, Bamako.

19:02Officials said he exchanged fire with the attackers and managed to neutralise some of them before succumbing to his injuries. His death is a major blow for the military government, since he was a key link with the Russian mercenaries who support the junta. In a separate development, the Tuareg separatists in the north say they've reached an agreement for the Russians to leave. Our West Africa reporter Makoachi Okofor gave this update on the continued fighting in Mali. The military junta said it continued this fight against the two groups who sort of came together to fight them. First is the FLA, which is the Tuareg group trying to break away from the country.

19:44And then a KEDA-linked group called Jinim, which is also trying to install their relationship there. The military did say that they have remained and that they are trying to take back many parts of the country, including Kidal and Kati and even other parts. They've also installed curfews and increased sort of patrols and checkpoints in the city. In a statement that they shared today, they said 16 people died, including some members of the military and civilians, but they didn't give specifics which members were impacted. And the significance of this claim that Russians have withdrawn the mercenaries from fighting in the north of Mali?

20:24I think it's quite significant if indeed it's true. And this is because for many years, the north has been the region that the FLA has been trying to take. And the Russian mercenaries there have also been trying to just help the Junta push back and fight back in that region. FLA spokesperson told the BBC that actually they reached an agreement with Russian forces to allow for this withdrawal. It's not clear why maybe this sort of agreement could have happened. And according to him, the deal was to see that they removed their snipers and full engagement from the city. I know I saw a couple of posts he made on X about what appeared to be military vehicles leaving.

21:10But if it did happen, then it will be impactful in the region. Our West Africa reporter Makoachi Okofor. Still to come in this podcast, an orangutan on a canopy bridge is a sight to behold. Waiting for this moment for two years has been excruciating. So when it finally happened, yeah, we were absolutely overjoyed. What does this mean for conservation efforts in Indonesia?

21:43What makes people want to believe in aliens? I'm Tristan Redmond, one of the hosts of the Global Story podcast from the BBC. Donald Trump last week announced that he'd be releasing the US government's UFO files. So why the renewed interest in life out there? And what deeper spiritual meaning might people be searching for? Check out the global story. We are serious journalists on BBC.com or wherever you get your pods.

22:17This is the Global News Podcast. A moment in athletics history today. Sebastian Saue of Kenya has become the first athlete to run a competitive marathon in under two hours. It's an achievement many commentators thought could not be done. He won the men's race in London with a time of one hour, 59 minutes and 30 seconds. Sebastian Saue is going to break the two hour mark. He's going to win the London Marathon in incredible style. An historic performance, 159.30. Absolutely incredible. I've never seen anything like that. What a finish. Remarkably, another athlete, the Ethiopian Yomuf Kajelcha, making his London marathon debut, became the second man to run under two hours in the same race.

23:08He came in second. The marathon winner, Sebastian Sawe, beat the previous best race time by more than a minute With such a massive leap from the last world record, there are bound to be questions about doping. But a testing regime designed and implemented by the Athletics Integrity Unit, or AIU, an independent body set up by World Athletics, has consistently found him to be drug-free. My colleague Owen Bennett-Jones spoke to Claudio Berardelli, the runner's coach, and asked, did he expect the two-hour barrier to be broken? Oh, well, maybe not really a sub two, but well, Sebastian was ready for a good one, definitely, and then perfect day, perfect condition, and then something quite incredible came.

23:56I mean, this really is a big change in the speed in which people are doing it. What's changed? Well, I would say technology is definitely playing a huge role because we had an incredible shoe from Adidas, our main sponsor. What is also changing is the level of fueling, more carbs the level of training it has improved a lot in the years and at least they have learned how to recover much better and then of course I have to say the truth as coach of Sebastian Sauer Sebastian is an exceptional athlete I've been coaching in Kenya for 22 years and I thought I had seen pretty much everything but Sebastian is showing me something which honestly I never thought to see and you know I'm going to ask you the next question because you've taken a lot of measures to try and get rid of this issue but some of your athletes have been done for doping and you have tried to get a lot of tests on Sebastian Sauer to show he's not doing it.

24:47Presumably you're going to face that claim. Yeah well I mean Kenya is facing definitely a problem and we had also yes in our group some few cases and then we thought it was time to do something because Sebastian and I knew that maybe a day like today could have come. So, and then we approached AIU and then we came up with this idea. And then, well, Sebastian is still continuing in having a very specific, intense anti-doping protocol. Yeah. I mean, the idea is what tests about every three days? Yeah, that was initially what we did before Berlin last year. But then AIU came to us and he said, okay, you guys are still giving us a budget, but we think that every three days doesn't make much sense.