Brazilian police deployed at a camp of supporters of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro in the capital on Monday, a day after rioters launched the worst attack on Brazil\u2019s state institutions since its return to democracy in the 1980s.
\nHundreds of police in riot gear and some on horseback amassed at the encampment near Brasilia\u2019s army headquarters, while soldiers in the area withdrew, Reuters witnesses said, after Sunday\u2019s storming by thousands of Bolsonaro\u2019s backers of Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidential palace.
\nPresident Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Bolsonaro\u2019s leftist rival who took office on January 1 after a narrow October election win, promised to bring those responsible for the violence to justice, after demonstrators broke windows and furniture, destroyed artwork and stole guns and artefacts.
\nUS President Joe Biden joined other world leaders in condemning the attacks, calling them \u201coutrageous\u201d, while Bolsonaro who is now in Florida denied inciting his supporters and said the rioters had \u201ccrossed the line\u201d.
\nSupreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered the governor of Brasilia removed from office late on Sunday for 90 days over alleged security failings. He also ordered social media platforms Facebook, Twitter and TikTok to block accounts of users spreading anti-democratic propaganda.
\nFacebook parent Meta said on Monday it was removing content supporting or praising the weekend ransacking of Brazilian government buildings. Telegram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
\nLula, a former union organiser who was also president from 2003 to 2010, said the local militarised police force that reports to Brasilia Governor Ibaneis Rocha, a former Bolsonaro ally, did nothing to stop the protesters from advancing.
\nLula decreed federal intervention of public security in the capital and promised exemplary punishment for the leaders of the \u201cfascist\u201d assault that was aimed at provoking a military coup that could restore Bolsonaro to power.
\n\u201cAll the people who did this will be found and punished,\u201d Lula told reporters from Sao Paulo State.
\nHe blamed Bolsonaro for inflaming his supporters after a campaign of baseless allegations about election fraud after the end of his rule marked by divisive nationalist populism.
\nFrom Florida, where Bolsonaro flew 48 hours before his term ended, the former president rejected the accusation. He said on Twitter that peaceful demonstrations were democratic but the invasion of government buildings \u201ccrossed the line.\u201d
\nThe assault raised questions among Lula\u2019s allies about how security forces in the capital were so unprepared and easily overwhelmed by rioters who had discussed plans on social media for days about gathering for weekend demonstrations.
\nThe invasion recalled the assault on the US Capitol two years ago by backers of former president Donald Trump, drawing condemnation from Biden, European leaders, Latin American heads of state and others.
\n\u201cThe violent attacks on democratic institutions are an attack on democracy that cannot be tolerated,\u201d German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned any bid to undermine the peaceful transfer of power.
\nKremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia condemned \u201cin the strongest terms\u201d the actions of those behind the disorder.
\nBrazilian markets are expected to take a knock when they open on Monday.
\nPolice retook the damaged public buildings in the futuristic capital after three hours and dispersed the crowd with tear gas.
\nJustice Minister Flavio Dino said 200 demonstrators had been arrested. Governor Rocha, writing on Twitter before the court announced its move, put the number at 400.
\nDino said investigations would aim to uncover who financed the several hundred buses that brought Bolsonaro\u2019s supporters to Brasilia and also probe Rocha for not preparing security.
\nThe occupation of the government buildings had been planned for at least two weeks by Bolsonaro\u2019s supporters in groups on social media messaging platforms such as Telegram and Twitter, yet there was no move by security forces to prevent the attack, called by one group \u201cthe seizure of power by the people\u201d.
\nMessages seen by Reuters throughout the week showed members of such groups organising meeting points in several cities around the country, from where chartered buses would leave for Brasilia, with the intention to occupy public buildings.
\nThe plan included camping in front of Brasilia\u2019s army command headquarters, where demonstrators have been since Lula narrowly won the election in October.
\nIn the early afternoon of Sunday, when the protesters began to arrive on Brasilia\u2019s esplanade, instead of being contained, they were escorted by Military Police cars with flashing lights.
\nRiot police only arrived on the scene two hours after the invasions began.
\nBolsonaro faces legal risks from several investigations before the Supreme Court in Brazil and his future in the United States, where he travelled on a visa issued only to sitting presidents, is in question.
\n\u201cBolsonaro should not be in Florida,\u201d Democratic Congressman Joaquin Castro said on CNN. \u201cThe United States should not be a refuge for this authoritarian who has inspired domestic terrorism in Brazil. He should be sent back to Brazil.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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