Summary

  • Security forces have detained 1,500 people after supporters of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro stormed government buildings in Brasília

  • Thousands of demonstrators ransacked the Congress building as well as the presidential palace, and Supreme Court on Sunday

  • Brazilian authorities have begun to dismantle protest camps outside the army’s headquarters in the capital and at other sites

  • Bolsonaro lost the presidential election to left-wing Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in October after sowing unsubstantiated claims about voting systems

  • Many of his supporters have refused to accept the result and some have been camping outside army buildings around the country calling for a military intervention

  • Bolsonaro has denied encouraging Sunday's attack, saying what happened had gone beyond democratic protest

  • His wife says he is under observation in hospital in Florida for abdominal pain stemming from when he was stabbed in 2018

  • World leaders including US President Joe Biden have condemned the riots as an attack on democracy

  1. We're pausing our coveragepublished at 21:47 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Brazil's flag is reflected on a broken window in the presidential palace in BrasiliaImage source, Reuters

    We'll be pausing our live coverage.

    Here's a round-up of where things stand:

    • Thousands of people are gathering in Brazil's largest city, São Paulo, to demonstrate in support of democratic values after far-right rioters stormed government buildings in Brasília
    • About 1,500 supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro have been detained after the Congress building, presidential palace and Supreme Court were ransacked on Sunday
    • Security forces are clearing protest camps outside the army's headquarters in Brasília, where some 3,000 Bolsonaro supporters had set up tents
    • They refuse to accept that he lost October's election and have been calling for military intervention and the resignation of the country's new left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva
    • Lula has condemned the riots as "terrorist acts" and said the Congress invaders would be punished
    • Meanwhile, Bolsonaro, who denied encouraging Sunday's attack, was admitted to hospital in the US on Monday with what his wife said was abdominal pain
    • He left Brazil for the US about 10 days ago and refused to take part in the handover of power to incoming Lula last week

    You can continue to follow the latest updates from Brazil here.

  2. What did the Bolsonaro protesters in Brazil want?published at 21:27 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Katy Watson
    South America correspondent in São Paulo

    While Jair Bolsonaro may not have been the mastermind behind the invasion, he cannot be separated from it.

    Throughout his term, he has repeatedly questioned the efficacy of Brazil's institutions - accusing the Supreme Federal Court of being politically against him, and the voting system of being prone to fraud, despite no evidence to support those claims.

    His supporters took on his narrative wholeheartedly.

    Since he lost the elections in October he flew off to Florida to avoid having to hand over the presidential sash to Lula - and he's allowed his most ardent supporters to remain angry over a democratic election that he legitimately lost.

    Tension has definitely been building. Camps were set up across the country in front of army headquarters, with protesters loyal to Bolsonaro calling for military intervention. And then in December, supporters set fire to Federal Police headquarters in Brasilia. Another supporter was arrested for allegedly trying to set off a bomb before Lula's inauguration on 1 January.

    It's no secret that many security forces are more on the side of Bolsonaro than Lula.

    For Bolsonaro's supporters, Lula - who was jailed in 2017 for corruption, and spent 18 months in prison before the convictions were annulled - is a corrupt politician who belongs in prison, not the presidential palace.

    They falsely accuse him of being a communist, wanting to impose a regime like Venezuela or Cuba. They won't be convinced by anything else - and they won't give up their fight for "democracy" as they call it.

    But there's a massive flaw in their argument in wanting freedom and democracy.

    They are calling for a very undemocratic military intervention to "save" Brazil - an intervention that despite their best efforts, doesn't look forthcoming.

  3. How police failed to stop the protestpublished at 21:17 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Reality Check

    Thousands of people began gathering outside Brazilian government buildings in the days following Bolsonaro's election loss. President Lula had called on local security forces to remove these protesters, but police opted to not use force.

    The march - Protesters traveled on foot for 7km (4 miles) towards the government building complex, without being stopped by police. Officials have not said yet whether they had an official parade permit.

    Breaching barricades - Video shows a single line of metal barriers outside Three Powers Square. One policeman is seen deploying pepper spray before the crowd quickly overwhelms the force.

    Entering buildings - Police have been criticised for being too hands-off with the protesters as they streamed into buildings. Two videos we've verified show policemen taking pictures of the crowds as they walk up the ramps and into the Congress building.

    Read more about what officials did to stop the riot here.

    Graphic with timeline of how the buildings were attacked
  4. Senators give backing to riots inquirypublished at 20:59 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Luis Barrucho
    BBC Brazilian Service

    Former presidential contender and senator Soraya Thronicke has tweeted she’s gathered more support than necessary for the opening of a parliamentary committee inquiry to investigate Sunday’s riots.

    She will now need the approval of the president of the Brazilian Senate, but this is very likely to happen according senators I spoke to.

    Earlier today she urged colleagues to back her proposal.

    “I would like to thank all colleagues who supported the initiative. Democracy is sacred. Many realize it only after they lose it. In our Brazil, it will survive," she said.

    The investigation would look into who is responsible for the attacks in Brasília on Sunday.

  5. Old photo of Brazilian 'QAnon Shaman' goes viralpublished at 20:27 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Shayan Sardarizadeh
    Disinformation expert at BBC Monitoring

    The photos showing the QAnon Shaman at the Capitol riot in Washington and the Brazilian version pictured in 2021

    Old images of a Brazilian man wearing a costume similar to US Capitol rioter Jacob Chansley, also known as "the QAnon Shaman", are being shared online to indicate they were from yesterday’s riot in Brasília.

    The images have racked up millions of views on Twitter and other platforms.

    But the pictures, showing a man wearing horns and a bearskin head-dress with a Brazilian flag painted on his face, are from a rally by Jair Bolsonaro’s supporters in Sao Paulo in September 2021.

    There are currently no images or videos indicating the so-called Brazilian QAnon Shaman’s participated in yesterday’s events.

    Chansley, a follower of the baseless QAnon conspiracy theory, became one of the most recognisable figures from the Capitol siege and was sentenced to 41 months in prison.

    During breaking news situations, it is easy to be drawn in by social media posts specifically designed to maximise engagement.

    But a quick check with freely available tools, such as a reverse image search, could prevent the spread of misleading information.

  6. Anger and division lingers in São Paulopublished at 20:03 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Katy Watson
    South America correspondent in São Paulo

    Two men carry a fridge in São PauloImage source, BBC/KATY WATSON

    I’ve been down to the camp outside the military barracks in São Paulo.

    It’s one of many that cropped up after President Lula’s victory in October - and they all have to be dismantled today after Sunday’s events in Brasilia.

    Although people are complying, they are doing it begrudgingly - I saw two men move a fridge into the back of the van - they’ve been there so long, there’s a lot of infrastructure to dismantle.

    One man, who told me his name was "Warrior" blamed leftist infiltrators for the invasion of Congress.

    "We’ve been protesting peacefully here," he said.

    Another blamed the "communist press" for negative coverage – shouting down the camera of a journalist who was filming.

    Calm may have been restored in Brasília, but the anger and political division is still here.

    Getting rid of the camps will not make it go away.

  7. Bolsonaro's wife confirms hospital admissionpublished at 19:51 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Jair Bolsonaro's wife has taken to social media to confirm earlier reports that the former Brazilian president has been admitted to hospital with abdominal pain.

    Bolsonaro "is under observation in the hospital, due to abdominal discomfort stemming from the stabbing attack he suffered in 2018" during his winning presidential campaign, Michelle Bolsonaro wrote on Instagram.

    Bolsonaro is currently in an acute care hospital outside Orlando, Florida. As we reported earlier, it's not the first time that he has been in hospital over the campaign stabbing.

  8. Police forces will work with governmentpublished at 19:37 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Flavio Dino, Minister of Justice, has been delivering a news conference in Brasília.

    He was asked whether the federal government can count on the leadership of the police forces.

    A representative from the Federal Highway Police's leadership told reporters that he guarantees the government will be able to count on them. Both representatives said they serve the state of Brazil as an entity - rather than particular governments, which are re-elected every four years.

    A representative from the Federal Police leadership echoed the statements, saying that as a state institution they would act with firmness and rigour.

    Back in October, on the day of the second round of Brazil's presidential elections, officers from the Federal Highway Police were accused of stopping buses carrying voters.

    The incident took place in Brazil's north-east, which has a left-wing stronghold and officers were accused of meddling with voter turnout.

  9. Images show extent of damage inside ransacked Congresspublished at 19:22 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Officials say about 1,500 people have been arrested following the storming of the National Congress in Brasília.

    The BBC has been inside the government building to see the damage.

    Here are a few pictures, taken by São Paulo-based producer Jessica Cruz, showing some of the destruction.

    Damaged National Congress building
    Image caption,

    On Sunday supporters of ex-President Jair Bolsonaro invaded and ransacked three branches of the government in Brasilia - the presidential palace, Congress and the Supreme Court.

    National Congress ransacked
    Image caption,

    Footage shows debris littered everywhere, including shattered computers and damaged security barriers.

    Damaged National Congress building
    Image caption,

    Sunday's attacks were the worst against Brazil's state institutions since its return to democracy in the 1980s.

    National Congress trashed
    Image caption,

    Jair Bolsonaro wrote on Twitter that peaceful demonstrations were democratic but the invasion of government buildings "crossed the line".

  10. Riots were a Brazilian Capitol Hill - justice ministerpublished at 19:09 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    As the press conference continues, Security and Justice Minister Flavio Dino takes questions - he's asked whether more could have been done to prevent the riots.

    Dino says that everything possible was done under the constitution.

    He says governors in other areas had acted quickly to reinforce their security.

    He is asked whether there was a link between large agribusiness - seen as supportive of Bolsonaro - and the funding of the buses that transported the former president's supporters into the capital.

    Dino says it is not possible to make this link yet, and it is too soon to say as doing so could lead to generalisations being made.

    Asked if there were intelligence failures, Dino said authorities hadn't expected violent acts and said there was a meeting on Friday in which there was an understanding that there would be a blockade.

    Dino said Brazil was blessed by God because thankfully no lives were lost in the riots.

    He said there was no doubt that it was a Brazilian version of America's January 6 Capitol Hill attack in 2021 - but with more arrests.

  11. A scene very different from after the Capitol riots in Washington DCpublished at 18:45 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Bernd Debusmann Jr
    Reporting from Brasília

    Presidential palace in Brasília

    The scene here at the palace is surprisingly calm - especially when compared to what Washington DC was like two years ago after the riot that rocked the US Capitol.

    On the morning of 7 January 2021, I remember being on Capitol Hill and seeing National Guard armoured vehicles parked all over downtown Washington DC, and young troops from across the country guarding razor wire fences that had been put up overnight.

    None of that is immediately visible here in Brasília the day after the riot. A few olive-drab military buses - similar to school buses - were parked outside, and a few soldiers are milling about nearby.

    The security presence here is certainly much less in one's face than it was in Washington DC - but that's not to say that Brazilian officials aren't coming down hard on those they think may be responsible.

    As I write this, officials are delivering a live update on TV in which they've noted that approximately 1,500 people have been detained.

  12. Justice minister vows to find protest organiserspublished at 18:38 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    More from that press conference now, given by Security and Justice Minister Flavio Dino. He says a team is working to ensure the penal responsibility goes beyond those that were there last night.

    He says he wants to get to the bottom of who organised it and says there may be preventative arrests.

    Dino says several crimes took place, ranging from "golpe de estado" - coup d'tat - to attacks on media personnel.

    He says he wants to make sure those who infringed the law are held to account.

  13. Protesters used stones as impromptu missilespublished at 18:29 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Bernd Debusmann Jr
    Reporting from Brasilia

    National Congress building damaged

    We've just arrived at the presidential palace in Brasília where the clean-up is still very much ongoing.

    From a distance there is very little indication a riot took place.

    But, as we get closer, the scale of the damage from yesterday becomes abundantly clear.

    Many of the windows are still broken.

    Workers are taking them down and quickly replacing the glass panes.

    The same is true of the other government buildings in the same complex.

    In some places, pieces of the cobblestone pathways near the building are missing.

    An official just explained to me the rioters used the stones are impromptu missiles with which to break the glass.

    Cobbles taken out of path during National Congress ransacking
  14. Justice and security minister calls for informationpublished at 18:19 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Flavio Dino, Brazil's Justice and Security Minister, has just begun a press briefing.

    He says 40 buses were held by the federal police, after the storming of the Congress, and in one of those buses there was a gun, which he says shows preparation for acts of violence​.

    He says that with 209 arrests yesterday, and another 1,200 today, the total is close to 1,500.

    Dino says the government is asking for information from the population, and 13,000 emails have been received already.

  15. What's been happening in Brazil?published at 18:13 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Army soldiers work to dismantle the tents of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro in a camp in front of the Army Headquarters, in BrasíliaImage source, EPA

    It’s just past 6pm in London, and 3pm in Brasília. Here's a quick recap of where things stand:

    • Supporters of the former president, Jair Bolsonaro, stormed Congress and other official buildings including the presidential palace and the Supreme Court on Sunday
    • Newly inaugurated President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was not there when the invasion happened, but he has since flown back from visiting flood victims in Sao Paulo state to inspect the damage
    • Invaders left a trail of destruction leaving windows broken, furniture overturned and flooded parts of the National Congress
    • The Brazilian government says at least 1,500 people have been arrested following unrest in the capital, Brasília
    • A source close to Jair Bolsonaro has told Reuters news agency that the former Brazilian president has been admitted into hospital in Orlando, Florida, with abdominal pain, but his condition is "not worrying"
    • The US says "no official request" has been made from Brazil relating to the visa of former president Bolsonaro
    • Meanwhile Bolsonaro supporters have been seen dismantling their camping equipment near to where the army headquarters is located in Brasilia

    Stay with us as we bring you more through the evening.

  16. Bolsonaro was stabbed at a rally in 2018published at 17:58 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Media caption,

    Jair Bolsonaro: Brazil presidential front-runner stabbed at rally

    As we've just told you, there are reports that former president Jair Bolsonaro has been admitted to hospital in Florida with abdominal pain.

    It's worth noting that he's been in hospital with abdominal pain on several previous occasions since September 2018, when he was stabbed during a campaign rally ahead of the presidential elections that got him into office.

    At the time, the far-right politician was the front-runner and he was attacked in a crowd in the south-east state of Minas Gerais.

    However, some are raising questions about the timing of this reported hospital admission - federal deputy Andre Janones tweets, external: "Fearing being arrested, Bolsonaro is admitted to a hospital in the United States, alleging strong abdominal pain."

  17. Bolsonaro admitted to hospital in US with abdominal pain - reportspublished at 17:48 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Sources close to Jair Bolsonaro have told Reuters news agency and O Globo newspaper, external that the former Brazilian president has been admitted into hospital in Orlando, Florida.

    The reports say Bolsonaro was admitted with abdominal pain, but a source close to his family told Reuters his condition is "not worrying".

  18. Brazilian influencers working together to find protesterspublished at 17:35 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Luis Barrucho
    BBC Brazilian Service

    Felipe Neto collects an awardImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Youtuber Felipe Neto

    After yesterday’s unrest in Brasília, some of the top social media influencers in Brazil have mobilised to identify the rioters, asking their followers to share pictures and videos of those who were involved in the storming of government buildings.

    One of them is Felipe Neto, a Brazilian Youtuber and one of the loudest critics of Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro. He wants his 16 million Twitter followers to share “screenshots that show the faces of those involved in the terrorist invasion of the National Congress”.

    A lot of people have noticed similarities to Sedition Hunters, an online group that helped find those who attacked the US Capitol two years ago.

    Fact-checking news outlet Agencia Lupa has also set up a database to gather “anti-democratic posts in recent days on social networks or messaging applications” that led to the riots.

    On its website, it says its intention is “to understand how the acts of vandalism seen in Brasília were organised.”

  19. US, Canada and Mexico leaders 'stand with Brazil'published at 17:27 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    A joint statement has been issued at a North America summit in Mexico City, with the leaders of Canada, the US and Mexico condemning what they describe as "attacks on Brazil's democracy".

    US President Joe Biden, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated they all "stand with Brazil, as it safeguards its democratic institutions".

    "Our governments support the free will of the people of Brazil," the three leaders said in their statement.

    Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has said he did not instigate the unrest in Brasília on Sunday, and has always respected the constitution and the rule of law.

  20. Brazilian Real and stock market downpublished at 17:15 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2023

    Luis Barrucho
    BBC Brazilian Service

    The Brazilian stock market building in Sao PauloImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    The Brazilian stock market building in Sao Paulo

    Brazil's currency and stocks have been falling after the storming of government buildings in the capital Brasília by supporters of far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro.

    The Real currency has lost 1.05% in value against the dollar, while the benchmark Sao Paulo stock market index has retreated 0.35% in afternoon trading.

    Economist Andre Perfeito told BBC Brazil “an institutional crisis is taking place and this should have an effect on the price of financial assets”.

    “It is reasonable to assume that the perception of risk rises and thus interest rates should rise with effects on the stock exchange and other assets”.

    “The situation will probably be overcome, but it will be tense days in the markets and in the nation”, he added.