US President Joe Biden on Thursday made a fervent appeal for lawmakers to pass tougher gun control laws, including a ban on assault weapons, to curb a scourge of mass shootings turning American communities into "killing fields."
Biden made the 17-minute address -- his latest call for tougher firearms measures -- with 56 lighted candles arrayed along a long corridor behind him, representing US states and territories suffering from gun violence, AFP said.
