Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was hospitalized in Orlando, Florida, on Monday with “abdominal pain,” the O Globo newspaper reported.
The news comes a day after Bolsonaro’s supporters marched on government buildings in Brasilia in protest of new president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The rioting included demonstrators storming Brazil’s Supreme Court, Congress, and the presidential palace.
Bolsonaro has a history of health problems, having been hospitalized multiple times for intestinal blockages. He suffered intestinal damage when he was stabbed at a 2018 campaign rally.
Bolsonaro never conceded defeat and refused to attend his successor’s inauguration. He flew to Florida two days prior to the new president being sworn in.
President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro arrives for a press conference two days after being defeated by Lula da Silva in the presidential runoff at Alvorada Palace on November 1, 2022 in Brasilia, Brazil. Bolsonaro didn’t acknowledge his defeat and asked supporters to protest in a pacific way and allowing free transit through the country.
(Andressa Anholete/Getty Images)
Bolsonaro denied having any involvement with the rioting and issued a statement condemning the violence.
“Peaceful demonstrations, within the law, are part of democracy. However, vandalism and the invasion of public buildings like today’s acts, and like those practiced by the left in 2013 and 2017, are an exception,” Bolsonaro wrote in a statement, according to The Wall Street Journal.
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President Biden offered his own condemnation of the attack Sunday evening.
Supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro supporters clash with security forces as they raid the National Congress in Brasilia, Brazil, 08 January 2023. Groups shouting slogans demanding intervention from the army broke through the police barrier and entered the Congress building, according to local media. Police intervened with tear gas to disperse pro-Bolsonaro protesters. Some demonstrators were seen climbing onto the roofs of the House of Representatives and Senate buildings.
(Mateus Bonomi/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“I condemn the assault on democracy and on the peaceful transfer of power in Brazil,” Biden wrote on Twitter. “Brazil’s democratic institutions have our full support and the will of the Brazilian people must not be undermined. I look forward to continuing to work with President Lula.”
Supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro clash with security forces as they break into Planalto Palace and raid Supreme Court in Brasilia, Brazil, 08 January 2023. Groups shouting slogans demanding intervention from the army broke through the police barrier and entered the Congress building, according to local media. Police intervened with tear gas to disperse pro-Bolsonaro protesters. Bolsonaro supporters managed to invade and ransack the National Congress, Planalto Palace, or President’s office, and the Supreme Federal Court.
(Joedson Alves/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
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Brazilian authorities were able to retake control of the government buildings by Sunday evening. Brazilian media reported that as many as 1,200 pro-Bolsonaro protesters had been arrested and were being detained at the Brazilian Army headquarters near the capital.
Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
