Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Trump's account will be suspended for the remainder of his term in office.

"We believe the risks of allowing the president to continue to use our service during this period are simply too great," he wrote in a statement.

As our technology correspondent James Clayton noted (see our post from an hour ago) social media giants like Twitter and Facebook are still considering how to treat the accounts of the soon-to-be ex-president after he leaves office on 20 January.He will face different rules as a private citizen instead of a current head of state, especially if he continues to promote extremist conspiracies.

Paul Glynn
Entertainment & arts reporter

Image source, Reuters

Some of the biggest names in US television have been broadcasting their dismay and shock at the events which led to the storming of the Capitol on Wednesday.

Hosts of popular late night programmes all addressed the scenes in Washington DC, electing to open their respective shows with sombre monologues.

Speaking on his Late Late Show, James Corden described it as a "crazy, sad day, a day that will go down as a dark one in the long history of America".

The British-born US chat show host said his adopted home nation had been "hijacked" by a "lunatic and his crazy army", referring to the outgoing President Donald Trump.

Jimmy Kimmel opened his show by half-jokingly welcoming viewers to "the treason finale" of Trump's presidency, before criticising him for refusing to accept the election result.

The host also compared the breakdown of the working relationship between Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence, who defied calls to reject the Biden win, to the widely reported alleged breakdown of the marriage, external of reality TV star Kim Kardashian and her husband Kanye West.

"First Kim and Kanye, and now Trump and Pence. Very sad," Kimmel quipped.

Jimmy Fallon, meanwhile, began The Tonight Show by telling viewers it was a "difficult time" to do an entertainment programme, following the events which he stressed were "a disgrace" but "not a surprise".

"This is what happens when there is no peaceful transition of power and what happens when there is bad leadership," he said. "This is not how you lose."

Image source, Getty Images

US President Donald Trump has less than two weeks left in office, but Democrats of the House Judiciary Committee are calling for his presidential powers to be removed after his supporters violently stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday.

They have written a letter to Vice-President Mike Pence urging him to act to remove Donald Trump from office, saying he had stoked an act of insurrection and "sought to undermine our democracy".

Discussions are focusing on the 25th Amendment of the US Constitution, which allows for a transfer of power from the president to the vice-president, either temporarily or permanently.

The 25th Amendment allows the vice-president to become acting president when a president is unable to continue his duties, if for example, he or she becomes incapacitated due to a physical or mental illness.

It also provides procedures for the removal of a president from office by the vice-president and cabinet members if he or she is found unable to discharge powers and duties.

Here's what you need to know.

Image source, Getty Images

A US congressman has described to ABC News, external the moment a woman was shot dead in the Capitol building.

Markwayne Mullin, a Republican lawmaker from Oklahoma, said the woman had been among a crowd of people trying to enter the House of Representatives chamber.

"The mob was going to come through the door, there was a lot of members and staff that were in danger at the time,” he said.

One of the plainclothes Capitol Police officers in the chamber fired his service weapon as “multiple individuals” tried to get into the room, he said.

“When he [drew] his weapon, that's a decision that's very hard for anyone to make and, once you draw your weapon like that, you have to defend yourself with deadly force."

The woman who was shot was taken to hospital, where she was later declared dead. She has not been officially named, but local media identified her as San Diego-area US Air Force veteran and Trump supporter Ashli Babbit.

Mullin said the shooting did result in the departure of the crowd from the doors of the chamber.

“[The officer's] actions may be judged in a lot of different ways moving forward,” Mullin said, “but his actions I believe saved people's lives even more. Unfortunately, it did take one though."

James Clayton
North America technology reporter

Twitter has not only locked the President's Twitter feed but thrown serious jeopardy on Donald Trump's long-term future on the platform.

Despite numerous breaches of its rules over the years, Twitter has allowed Mr Trump to remain on the social media platform because he is the president.

But as the power given to him by the American people slowly slips away, so does his Twitter immunity.

His words on social media, for years, helped to incite Wednesday's storming of Capitol Hill. As a soon-to-be private citizen, a decision to kick him off would be a lot easier to make.

Facebook has already suspended Mr Trump for 24 hours, and may well be thinking of a more long-term ban too.

All the big social media companies have made it clear that - as a private citizen - if you continually look to peddle conspiracy theories and promote extremism, you should expect to be kicked out. Mr Trump will be no exception.

Reality Check and BBC Monitoring

Image source, Getty Images

Some of the protesters who broke into buildings on Capitol Hill after a pro-Trump rally were carrying symbols and flags strongly associated with particular ideas and factions.

But in practice, many of the members and their causes overlap.

From a well-known supporter of the baseless conspiracy theory QAnon to members of the far-right Proud Boys and other online influencers, we've identified some of the people involved.

Read the full story here.

French President Emmanuel Macron has become the latest world leader to react to yesterday's violence at the US Capitol.

"What happened today in Washington DC is not America," Macron said in a video, which was posted on Twitter alongside the words "We believe in democracy".

"We believe in the strength of our democracies. We believe in the strength of American democracy."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said earlier that she felt "angry and also sad" after seeing images of the violent scenes, while other European leaders also voiced their condemnation of the attack.

In Russia, however, a foreign ministry spokeswoman blamed the violence on the "archaic" US electoral system and American media.

Read more here.

5 Live has been hearing reaction from Republicans in the UK.

Greg Swenson, from Republicans Overseas, said he condemned the violence.

"What happened yesterday is particularly indefensible because it's a sacred place, the Capitol,” he said.

Jan Halper-Hayes is the former worldwide Vice President of Republican Overseas.

She told 5 Live's Nicky Campbell the "negativity" against Trump did not help unite people in America.

"The liberal media is not helping us develop any unity or looking at whatever the issues are. I don¹t think any of it on either side has been any good but you have not presented how the people that support Trump have dealt with this and I think it¹s very unfair."

She went on to say that Trump needed to "shut up about it being fraud".

"He has become unhinged," she added.

Listen to 5 Live on the free BBC Sounds app.

It’s been a tumultuous 24 hours in US politics. Here’s a quick reminder of what has happened and what we might expect later:

• Congress has confirmed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the next president and vice-president of the US
• Legislators worked through the night to approve the electoral outcome after proceedings were disrupted when Trump supporters overran the Capitol building
• Donald Trump has finally pledged an orderly transition of power on 20 January, although he did not concede defeat and continued to dispute the election result
• A number of White House staff have resigned, including ex-chief of staff Mick Mulvaney, the deputy national security adviser and the First Lady’s chief of staff
• The FBI is appealing for witnesses to Wednesday’s violence, which left four people dead and led to some 52 arrests
• Democrats are expected to formally gain control of the US Senate after its two candidates were projected to win Tuesday’s race in Georgia
• President-elect Joe Biden is expected to speak in Delaware later and introduce Merrick Garland as his nominee for attorney general

Image source, Getty Images

Footage of rioters breaking down the doors to US Congress have shocked the world, but it's not the first time the Capitol has seen attacks.

Some people have said the last time these scenes were witnessed was in 1814 when British soliders set fire to the still-under-construction Congressional buildings after invading the city.

But actually since then there have been at least three other violent incidents, including in 1915 when three sticks of dynamite exploded in the Senate reception room.

Read about the other attacks on the heart of American politics.

Image source, Getty Images

The political fallout continues as another member of Trump's team resigns. Special envoy to Northern Ireland Mick Mulvaney announced on Thursday that he's resigning from his position, according to CNBC, external. Once one of Trump's closest advisers, Mulvaney was White House chief of staff from January 2019 to March 2020.

“I called [Secretary of State] Mike Pompeo last night to let him know I was resigning from that. I can’t do it. I can’t stay,” he told CNBC.

“Those who choose to stay, and I have talked with some of them, are choosing to stay because they’re worried the president might put someone worse in,” he said.

Mulvaney joins a list of officials who have stepped down in reaction to the assault including; Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Matthews, the chief of staff of First Lady Melania Trump, Stephanie Grisham, White House Social Secretary Rickie Niceta, and Deputy National Security Advisor Matt Pottinger.

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Much of the world's media is united in its criticism of Donald Trump over the siege on Congress.

"Narcissism prevailing over all dignity, external, he harasses institutions, tramples on democracy, divides his own camp," says an editorial in French newspaper Le Figaro.

And a commentator in Argentina's leading daily Clarin called it "the 'scorched earth' legacy of Donald Trump, external".

Others say the events raise doubts over the US's claims to be a leading world power. "I expect Trump to be tried after this turmoil," said one pundit on Egypt's MBC Misr TV, adding that "the US is no longer a superpower in the full sense of the word".

And several of the US's adversaries took the opportunity to criticise the country. China's Global Times described the assault in a headline "Capital vandals show fragility of US democracy, external".

Read more about how the world reacted to the violent scenes.

Image source, Getty Images

If you've spent any time on social media since Wednesday, you might have seen this picture, or a similar one. It's being shared by people accusing police of treating the Capitol rioters vastly more favourably to Black Lives Matters protesters last summer.

The photo shows Washington DC National Guard members guarding the steps of the Lincoln Memorial (not the Capitol, as some people have suggested) during protests against racial injustice on 2 June. The image, which was also widely shared at the time, was condemned as a militarised overreaction to what were largely peaceful nationwide demonstrations.

At the time, a spokesman for the DC National Guard said the troops were there to protect the memorial after it was slightly damaged and in response to potential new threats. He also said that the public could still access the memorial and the soldiers weren't wearing riot shields.

Their deployment came after police used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse demonstrators outside the White House as President Trump posed for a photo op outside a church.

The visual contrast between that image and the early pictures from Wednesday's assault on the Capitol, when the rioters first broke into Congress, is stark. "Imagine if #BlackLivesMatter were the ones who were storming the Capitol building," wrote CNN political commentator Van Jones on Wednesday.

Civil rights group NAACP, external contrasted it with the intense criticism footballer player Colin Kaepernick received for simply "taking a knee" during games to highlight racial injustice. And images of police appearing to take selfies with rioters, external or opening the gates, external to members of the mob have been widely condemned online.

It's still unclear exactly what happened on Wednesday and how rioters managed to break into Congress. It's worth bearing in mind that the role of the 2,000-strong Capitol Police is to guard the Capitol complex, and they are not engaged in the type of police work we normally associate with law enforcement. Initially they appear to have been overwhelmed by the numbers of violent rioters, before the city police and later the National Guard arrived.

Image source, Getty Images

A YouGov poll , externalsuggests that a majority of US voters perceived Wednesday’s storming of the Capitol as a threat to democracy - but there is a strong divide along party lines.

The survey of 1,397 registered US voters found 62% considered the riot a threat to democracy - including 93% of Democrats, 55% of independents, and 27% of Republicans.

Among Republicans, 45% of those polled actively supported the actions of Trump supporters disrupting Congress while it was in session, although 43% did not, YouGov found.

Several surveys in recent years have found that US politics is increasingly polarised - with sharp differences in opinion along party lines.

Gordon Corera
Security correspondent, BBC News

Image source, Reuters

The storming of the Capitol and the images of members of Congress afraid for their lives makes clear this was a monumental security failure.

There was advance warning of the protests and the possibility of violence should have come as no surprise and yet the security in place was manifestly inadequate to deter or stop people with the Capitol’s own police looking under-prepared and overwhelmed.

Contrasts have been drawn with the measures put in place for the Black Lives Matters protest last year when the National Guard and other forces were deployed in military fatigues in a highly visible show of force. That emphasises the sense in which security decisions appears to have been politicised under the Trump administration in terms of how different groups are treated.

National Guard reinforcements were only deployed after the storming took place, apparently after Vice-President Pence rather than President Trump gave the order.

Events could have been even worse if members of Congress had been confronted or taken hostage. And this will raise further concerns about security for Joe Biden’s inauguration on 20 January.

Reality Check

Image source, Reuters

It’s the area in Washington DC where the US Congress is situated and it's where laws are written, debated and passed.

The Hill is centred around the US Capitol building, where the Senate and the House of Representatives sit, as well as other office buildings. This is where elected lawmakers and their staff work and meet to do their businesses.

The Hill also comprises several other key sites – such as the US Supreme Court and the Library of Congress.

The US Capitol - the famous white domed building first completed in 1800 - is where Joe Biden will be sworn in as the next US president on 20 January.

Grace Tsoi
BBC News, Hong Kong

Image source, Getty Images

Beijing has compared the storming of the US Capitol Building and the break-in of the Hong Kong Legislative Council on 1 July 2019, calling out the West’s hypocrisy over its different attitudes.

“Similar events happened but some people in the US, including the media, have totally different reactions,” said China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Hua Chun-ying.

Some outside of China have also drawn comparisons between the two events, external.

However, despite the superficial similarities, there are actually many important differences.

I reported from inside the legislative chamber that night. Protesters did damage the building, spray graffiti and deface the Hong Kong emblem, resulting in HK$39 million ($5m; £3m) worth of damage. However, the chamber was empty before the protesters broke into the building – and no one was armed.

The storming of the Legislative Council also won public sympathy.

One widely-quoted piece of graffiti from that night had the slogan: “It was you who taught me that peaceful marches are useless”, referring to the government’s disregard of the two earlier peaceful marches that were attended by up to two million people. Protesters also set up a sign telling others not to destroy the library, and left money for drinks they took.

But the most important difference is that Hong Kong is not a democracy – its Legislative Council is designed in a way that makes it almost impossible for the pro-democracy camp to win a majority, and those protesters were demanding democratic reform, rather than the overturning of an election result.

Now, any organised attempt by the pro-democracy camp to win a majority may be an offence under the National Security Law recently imposed by Beijing – as shown on Wednesday, when more than 50 activists who organised and participated in pro-democracy primaries were arrested.

Read more: After the crackdown, Hong Kongers fear for the future

If you want to get a sense of some of the physical damage that rioters caused when they broke into Congress, have a look at this video from a CNN reporter of the inside of a senate official's office.

The mob also broke into Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's office, breaking glass and searching through her belongings. A rioter was photographed sitting in her chair and later, once he had left the building, proudly showed photographers letters that he had taken belonging to Pelosi.

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

A Fox News journalist also shared pictures of the destruction wrought on the Senate side of the Capitol buildings.

BBC Radio 5 Live

Anthony Scaramucci, a former White House Communications director under Donald Trump, and now a staunch critic of the President, has been giving his reaction to events in Washington on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Wake Up to Money programme, calling it "a sad day for the United States" but "a predictable tragedy".

Mr Scaramucci famously served 11 days in the communications role before being fired in 2017. “I have to own this for the rest of my life. I normalised him and went to go work for him," he said.

He added: “Donald Trump has become a great unifying figure in the United States. We just happen to all be unifying against him.

“In my 57 years here on planet Earth, I cannot recall a singular moment where I agreed with Chuck Schumer, Mitch McConnell and Joe Biden at the same time, but I did that today and I attribute that to the actions of Donald Trump."

Peter Bowes
North America correspondent

Image source, Reuters

The final tally of electoral college votes was never in doubt.

They'd already been confirmed by individual states but Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are now officially certified by the US Congress as the next president and vice president of the United States.

After being delayed for several hours the proceeding finally ended in the middle of the night, with some Republicans unsuccessfully objecting to results from several states.

In a statement Donald Trump said that while he totally disagreed with the outcome of the election, there would be an orderly transition on January 20th.

The president made no reference to the violent protest at the Capitol building, which led to the deaths of four people.