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Washington (AP) - At the still heavily guarded US Capitol in Washington, a driver drove his car into two police officers and then rammed a road barrier.
One of the officers was killed and another injured, the Capitol Police chief Yogananda Pittman said.
The driver, who got out of the car with a knife, was shot, she further reported.
He had not previously responded to warning calls from the security forces.
The US media reported that the Capitol was cordoned off because of the incident.
However, the Congress did not have a session day on Friday, so there are hardly any Senators or MPs in the complex.
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The incident occurred almost three months after the violent storming of the US Capitol by supporters of the elected ex-President Donald Trump.
Because of the unprecedented attack, the building is heavily guarded.
Last week, however, the security precautions around the congress headquarters were cut back a little.
For example, an outer fence that had shielded the area around the congress headquarters was dismantled.
Streets that were within this circle and that were cordoned off were reopened.
“It's really sad because I believed that once the barriers were removed, we would return to a certain normalcy.
But that only shows how high the risk is still, "said Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna, the news channel CNN.
Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell wrote on Twitter that he was praying for the injured police officer.
National Guard soldiers are still supporting the local security forces.
The Capitol Police also stressed last week that they are ready to restart security immediately if necessary.
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After the Capitol was stormed on January 6, the Capitol Police came under fire because the parliament's security forces were unable to repel the attack.
At least five people were killed in the riots, including a police officer.
The FBI classifies the storming of the Capitol as domestic terrorism.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210402-99-69003 / 2
Police tweet, English