President Donald Trump held a Nevada campaign rally at an indoor venue on Sunday despite public health professionals' warnings against large indoor gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump, a Republican, railed against his Democratic rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, suggesting he was taking drugs and was soft on crime. “Biden wants to appease domestic terrorists and my plan is to arrest domestic terrorists,”

Trump said to an enthusiastic crowd. “If Biden wins, the mob wins.”

People in the crowd were seated close together and many did not wear masks.

Biden has criticised Trump for holding campaign events that put people at risk of contracting the coronavirus.

Trump played down the virus in its early stages and has alternately embraced and disregarded advice from public health experts, who encourage mask-wearing and maintaining social distance to prevent its spread.

The President’s campaign portrayed the rally at a large warehouse in Henderson as an opportunity for supporters to exercise their rights to peaceful assembly.