After nearly a month out of the public eye, the first lady attended an event to honour Gold Star families

Melania Trump has made her first public appearance in almost a month, at a White House event to honour Gold Star families.

The first lady’s attendance at the reception on Monday evening ends weeks of fervent speculation as to her whereabouts. Internet conspiracy theories about “missing Melania” were fortified by reports over the weekend that the first lady would not be attending the G7 summit or the 12 June talks in Singapore with her husband.

Although Monday’s event was closed to press, a blurry video which appeared to show Melania Trump, and was later verified by AP, was posted on social media by Jena Greene, a reporter at the Daily Caller. Greene’s father was killed in action in Iraq in 2004, which means she is from a Gold Star family and would have been invited to the reception.

Play Video 0:12 Reporter's video of Melania Trump's first public appearance in almost a month

CNN also reported that the first lady was in the room. According to CNN, Trump made a joke about Melania’s prolonged absence, saying that the media were speculating the first lady had left him. He then pointed out that his wife was, in fact, sitting in the front row.

Missing Melania Trump barely makes news – things are getting weirder Read more

Following the event, the first lady tweeted: “Tonight @POTUS & I were honored to pay tribute to our fallen heroes. Thank you to the Gold Star families that joined us in celebration & remembrance.”

Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) Tonight @POTUS & I were honored to pay tribute to our fallen heroes. Thank you to the Gold Star families that joined us in celebration & remembrance. pic.twitter.com/6oSh1t88G7

The last time Melania Trump participated in an official event was on 10 May, when the first couple greeted three former US prisoners who had been returned from North Korea. Four days later, the first lady was admitted to hospital to treat a benign kidney condition. She was released from the hospital with no complications on 19 May.

“Great to have our incredible First Lady back home in the White House. Melanie is feeling and doing really well,” Trump tweeted in observance of the event. After realizing he’d spelled his wife’s name wrong Trump quickly deleted the tweet and posted a new one with the correct spelling.

The internet has been ablaze with outlandish explanations for Melania Trump’s prolonged absence. These range from theories that the first lady had plastic surgery to speculation that she has had enough of political life and fled her marriage. Some people have even been posting humorous flyers in New York seeking information on the “missing” first lady.

East Village Patch (@EVillagePatch) Flyers In NYC Seek Info On 'Missing' Melania Trump​ | Patch PM https://t.co/gFSjD5Tm9P pic.twitter.com/qB8PxInKw8

Her absence from the public eye has been particularly perplexing to some, considering that she announced her “Be Best” anti-bullying initiative on 7 May. As television personality Billy Eichner tweeted: “How can you Be Best if you Be Missing?”

On 30 May, Melania Trump tweeted, in response to theories about her absence.

Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) I see the media is working overtime speculating where I am & what I'm doing. Rest assured, I'm here at the @WhiteHouse w my family, feeling great, & working hard on behalf of children & the American people!

This did little to quell the conspiracy theories; it only fueled the idea that the first lady had died or disappeared and someone else was writing her tweets for her.

As Monday’s event has made clear, however, rumours of the first lady’s death have been greatly exaggerated.



Play Video 1:20 Melania Trump announces her ‘Be Best’ initiative for children - video

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