Bogota
The experienced photoperiodist Jim Lo Scalzo, who has worked in more than 60 countries, never thought he would capture with his lens what he himself called the “ siege of the U.S. Capitol, ” a fact that reminded him, to a lesser extent, of the looting in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein.
Lo Scalzo, photographer for the EPA / EFE agency U.S, captured front-line footage with his camera during the surprise attack by Donald Trump supporters on the Capitol in Washintgton last Wednesday.
The photographer had arrived at the scene in the morning to register the certification of the election of the president Joe Biden when he heard loud noises outside the building, which, although open to the public, is widely guarded.
“I remember thinking ‘Oh my God, this is really happening, they are coming into the building,’” said Lo Scalzo in an interview with EFE after acknowledging that in almost 30 years of professional career, he only felt the same way .
“It’s funny, this reminded me of when I was inside Iraq and the Americans came in … the Iraqis began to loot and destroy everything related to it port, clearly in this (the Capitol) was much less because I think people were surprised they had access, ”he said.
Although he was not afraid, photojournalist recognized that there were moments of real tension within the Capitol when hundreds of people entered the building, smashed doors and windows, and ran down the corridors to the great hall.
Finally, Lo Scalzo believed that what was in the Capitol It is the result of Trump’s ‘American massacre’, who has used this phrase to say since the beginning of his mandate that the United States has been the victim of crime and medicines.
On the attack Capitol and his subsequent recovery left five dead, including a police officer.
Lo Scalzo’s photos were distributed by the EPA (European Press Agency) and EFE printing services last Wednesday and published in hundreds of media around the world.