Brazil commemorates the January 8 attack on its capital Jair Bolsonaro News

President Lula attended the event to denounce the “coup” against him, which was led by supporters of his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva marked the second anniversary of the attack on government buildings with a celebration in the square where the violence occurred.

Lula – who underwent surgery last month to treat a hemorrhage in his brain – appeared on Wednesday at Three Powers Arena in the capital, Brasilia, to denounce. Riots of January 8, 2023which is similar to it suddenly Against his presidency.

He also used the occasion to show defiance in the wake of the attack, which saw thousands of demonstrators storm the presidential palace, the Supreme Court and the Congress building.

“Today is the day to say loudly and clearly: We are still here,” Lula told his supporters.

“We are here to say that we are alive and that democracy is alive, contrary to what the plotters of the January 8, 2023 coup planned.”

The attack, which occurred on January 8, came just seven days after Lula, the leftist leader, was inaugurated for a third non-consecutive term.

Lula was not in the presidential palace at the time, and the Brazilian Congress was not in session. But the attack caused millions of dollars in damage, and dozens of law enforcement officers and protesters were injured.

Many rioters sought to provoke a military uprising against Lula’s presidency.

Lula’s election was tight: he entered a runoff race against incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro in October 2022 and emerged victorious by one of the narrowest margins in Brazilian history. Just over 2.1 million votes separate the candidates.

But the far-right Bolsonaro had been spreading false claims long before the election that Brazil’s electronic voting system was vulnerable to fraud, and refused to publicly concede defeat in the wake of the vote.

This led to widespread protests, with Bolsonaro’s supporters blocking highways and launching attacks Police headquarters In Brasilia. A Bomb threat In the capital it was even reported in the run-up to the opening.

Bolsonaro left the country Florida Before Lula took power. He has since returned to the country, where he faces several legal cases and investigations.

Some of them relate to his role in spreading misinformation about the elections, as well as his connection to the January 8, 2023 attack.

In June 2023, Brazil’s electoral court ruled that Bolsonaro could not run for president again Until 2030as punishment for using government resources to sow distrust in the voting system.

In November 2024, the Federal Police was officially established accused Bolsonaro and 36 of his allies are planning to overturn the results of the 2022 elections. Prosecutor Paulo Junet has not yet decided whether to file formal charges against the former president.

Other investigations examined whether Bolsonaro embezzled jewelry from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia while he was in office, or spread misleading information during his rule Covid-19 pandemic.

However, on Wednesday, Bolsonaro confirmed on social media that US President-elect Donald Trump has invited him to Washington, D.C., to attend his inauguration on January 20.

“My lawyer, Dr. Paulo Bueno, has already sent a request to Minister Alexandre de Moraes to restore my passport so that I can attend this honorable and important historical event,” Bolsonaro said. books.

His passport was confiscated amid ongoing investigations.