Lula’s government fires 13 from his security team after January 8 Brazil riots
- Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expresses distrust in security detail after January 8 riots
- Buildings in Brasilia were stormed by supporters of far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s government has fired 13 soldiers from his security detail following violent anti-government riots for which he pointed the finger again at his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro.
A notice in the official gazette on Wednesday said the 13 troops were dismissed from the institutional security office attached to the presidency.
This followed the removal of another 40 soldiers earlier in the week from the presidential detail at Alvorada palace, where Brazil’s presidents live.
Just days after the attack on the presidential palace, Supreme Court and Congress by backers of far-right ex-president Bolsonaro, Lula said the rioters likely had inside help and hinted at security force involvement.
He ordered a thorough staffing review, saying he was “convinced that the door of the Planalto (presidential) palace was opened for people to enter because there are no broken doors”.
Leftist Lula, 77, beat Bolsonaro by a razor-thin margin in October elections that followed a vitriolic and divisive campaign.