Supporters of US President Donald Trump clash with police officers in front of the Capitol Building in Washington DC on January 6. Congress was holding a joint session to ratify President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College win over President Trump.

Aggressive pro-Trump supporters rallied outside the US Capitol's Rotunda. Police tried to hold them back, but they breached security and forced their way into the building.

An angry pro-Trump mob breaks into the US Capitol building on January 6, 2021, while Congress holds a joint session to ratify President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College win over President Trump.

With guns drawn, US Capitol police officers watch as protesters try to break into the House Chamber, the inner-most room where legislators had convened to ratify the Electoral College vote.

Security officials try to hold off the rioters in the hallway outside the Senate chamber as lawmakers on the other side of the door are rushed to safety.

After breaking through Capitol security, a protester rushes to the middle of the Senate chamber and screams "Freedom."

A rioter manages to break through security, and jumps from the public gallery to the floor of the Senate chamber.

People frantically searched for shelter in the House gallery, as the protesters tried to break into the House chamber. According to a White House reporter on the House floor, people were given gas masks that were under the seats.

Pro-Trump supporters took over the offices vacated by lawmakers who had been rushed to safety.

Without police or security officials to hold them back, protesters walzed through the Rotunda and lawmaker's offices. This one carried away the lectern of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

Security forces use tear gas on rioters rallying outside the US Capitol Building.

An explosion caused by a police munition goes off while pro-Trump supporters rally in front of the US Capitol building. Washington police and the national guard have been deployed to disperse the protesters.

Members of the National Guard and Washington DC police have been deployed to the Capitol to disperse protesters. A city-wide curfew went into effect from 6:00 pm to 6:00 am.

On January 6, thousands of supporters of former President Donald Trump flocked to the US Capitol, waving flags and claiming the election had been stolen from their political idol. Later, some 800 protesters stormed the iconic building, hunting down lawmakers, beating up police officers and leaving a trail of destruction. Five people died in connection with the riot and dozens were injured.

Many observers later said the riot marked an attempt to overthrow the government, instigated or orchestrated by the former president. A select committee of the US House of Representatives has begun investigating the events, and Trump's possible role in them. For his part, Trump has claimed there was "love in the air" on January 6.

The Capitol riot sparked global outrage. Many Republicans still, however, say the incident was a legitimate means of protest against what they claim was a rigged election. Some Republicans have even staged rallies outside US prisons in support of jailed rioters. The exact interpretation of the January 6 events will certainly have a big impact on the US midterm elections in November 2022.

Hundreds of individuals are facing prosecution over their role in the January 6 attack. So far, over 50 people have been sentenced for their actions on that day. Many left a slew of evidence on social media, boasting of their crimes, which has helped in handing down convictions. Defendants willing to plead guilty can hope to receive a reduced sentence.

The city of Washington, D.C, is suing members of the right-wing extremist group Proud Boys, loyal Trump supporters, to recoup damages for the Capitol attack. Authorities have accused the group's leaders of having conspired "to terrorize the District of Columbia" in "a coordinated act of domestic terrorism." Criminal charges have already been brought against several Proud Boys members.

Radio host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is considered a key instigator of the Capitol riot. He drummed up support for the pro-Trump march in Washington, calling for a million people to turn up and protest against allegedly corrupt Democratic Party. The congressional panel investigating the events of January 6 has found Jones helped finance the rally.

Images of Jacob Chansley, a topless, tattooed rioter wearing a striking, horned headdress, went around the globe. He soon became a symbol of the January 6 attack. Now, the self-proclaimed "QAnon Shaman" and conspiracy theorist from Phoenix, Arizona, has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to 3 1/2 years in jail.

Capitol Police officer Aquilino Gonell broke down as he rewatched footage of the deadly riot during a hearing of the congressional panel investigating the attack in July. That day, Gonell recalls, he thought "this is how I'm going to die, defending this entrance." One of Gonell's fellow police officers was killed in the Capitol riot, and four others committed suicide in the months that followed.

The reason die-hard Trump supporters managed to force their way into the Capitol is that US security agencies were unprepared. The US Senate found that despite warning signs of a potential attack, the police leadership failed to act: National Guard reinforcements were called in too late, and the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security downplayed the threat of violence.

Many political analysts predict Donald Trump will run again in the 2024 presidential election. While his supporters would be elated, critics would surely regard this as a nightmare come true. Until now, Trump has weathered practically all political scandals — not even his role in the January 6 Capitol attack seems to have undermined a potential comeback.