Washington, Jan 21 (AP) President Donald Trump on Monday said he was pardoning about 1,500 of his supporters who have been charged in the January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack, using his sweeping clemency powers on his first day back in office to dismantle the largest investigation and prosecution in Justice Department history.

The pardons were expected after Trump's yearslong campaign to rewrite the history of the January 6 attack that left more than 100 police officers injured and threatened the peaceful transfer of power.

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Yet, the scope of the clemency still comes as a massive blow to the Justice Department's effort to hold participants accountable over what has been described as one of the darkest days in American history.

Trump said he was also commuting the sentences of six defendants, though the White House did not immediately provide further details.

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Trump had suggested in the weeks leading up to his return to the White House that he was going to look at the January 6 defendants on a case-by-case basis.

Vice President JD Vance said just days ago that people responsible for the violence during the Capitol riot "obviously" should not be pardoned. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)