Pipe bombs have been sent to prominent critics of Donald Trump, authorities said on Wednesday, spreading terror in the US less than two weeks before the midterm elections.
Packages containing suspected explosives were sent to the homes of the former president Barack Obama and the former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton but intercepted by the US Secret Service, the agency said.
Two more suspect packages, addressed to the Democratic congresswoman Maxine Waters of California and former attorney general Eric Holder, were discovered before reaching their targets.
And CNN evacuated its studios in New York after what police called a “live explosive device” was found in its mailroom. The package was addressed to John Brennan, the former CIA director, who has repeatedly clashed with Trump.
The packages appeared after a bomb was discovered this week in a mailbox at the New York home of George Soros, the billionaire liberal donor. Police said the devices found so far were delivered in matching envelopes with similar address labeling and stamps.
James O’Neill, the New York police commissioner, said investigators suspected recipients may have been targeted because of their opposition to Trump. “It is of concern to us,” O’Neill said at a press conference.
Bill de Blasio, the mayor of New York City, described the packages as “an act of terror”. Asked if he linked the incidents to Trump’s praise last week for the violent assault of a Guardian journalist, De Blasio said politicians must stop encouraging attacks on the media. “And that has to start at the top,” he said.
Speaking at an event in Florida, Hillary Clinton said the US was in a “troubling time” and condemned divisive rhetoric by politicians. “We have to do everything we can to bring our country together,” said Clinton. “We also have to elect candidates who will try to do the same.”
Trump said at the White House that he condemned the attempted bombings and that a “major federal investigation” to catch those responsible was under way.
A chaotic Wednesday began with a statement from the Secret Service that said suspicious packages addressed to Obama and Clinton had been intercepted in New York and Washington. The agency protects the families of former presidents.
One package was discovered “in the vicinity of the Clinton residence in Chappaqua”, about 25 miles north of New York City, according to the FBI. A second “addressed to the residence” of Obama in Washington was found early on Wednesday morning.
“The packages were immediately identified during routine mail screening procedures as potential explosive devices and were appropriately handled as such,” the agency said. “Both packages were intercepted prior to being delivered to their intended location.”
Within hours, emergency responders arrived at the Time Warner Center in Manhattan late on Wednesday morning in response to an emergency call from CNN, which broadcasts from the building. Staff were evacuated after a fire alarm was heard on-air at 10.09am.
Reports of additional package discoveries emerged throughout the day in announcements from high-profile foes of Trump.
Soros, Clinton and Obama are three of the most prominent figures in Democratic politics and have for years been the subjects of attacks and conspiracy theories from Donald Trump and allies in the Republican party and rightwing media.
Matt Gaetz, a Republican congressman from Florida, last week falsely suggested that Soros, a billionaire financier and philanthropist, was funding the “caravan” of Central Americans currently traveling through Mexico toward the US.
Alexander Soros, George Soros’s son, said on Wednesday that a wave of vitriol against his father was unleashed by Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. In an article for the New York Times, he said of the attempted bombing: “I cannot see it divorced from the new normal of political demonization that plagues us today.”
CNN is frequently singled out for attacks by Trump even as he leads a campaign to discredit the media generally. In July last year, Trump tweeted an animated video of him wrestling the CNN logo to the ground.
The station reported that the package was addressed to Brennan, who has appeared on CNN as a commentator since leaving the CIA. In August, Trump stripped Brennan of his security clearance for being sharply critical of his presidency. Brennan is accused by some Trump supporters, without evidence, of being part of an imagined “deep state” conspiracy to undermine him.
The device was removed from CNN’s building and special operations officers were investigating. O’Neill, the New York police commissioner, said the package contained both what “appeared to be a live explosive device” and an envelope of white powder.
Police in Sunrise, Florida, said soon after noon on Wednesday that they were investigating a suspicious package in the area of a district office of Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the former Democratic party chairwoman.
The package was addressed to Holder, US attorney general under Obama, but was apparently redirected to Wasserman Schultz’s office after it could not be delivered. A photograph of the device sent to CNN showed that the office was also listed as a bogus return address on that package.
Another package intended for Waters, who is frequently derided by Trump and other Republicans, was caught during a screening at a facility in Maryland. Waters said in a statement that the package was referred to the FBI.
Investigators were exploring whether the devices discovered on Wednesday matched that which was found on Monday at the home of Soros. That device, according to US officials, consisted of a six-inch length of pipe loaded with explosive black powder. It was safely detonated by investigators after being found by a domestic staff member.
Following brief speculation that another suspicious package had been discovered on its way to the White House, the Secret Service said in a tweet: “Reports of a third intercepted package addressed to the WH are incorrect.”
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