Brazil: the impressive images of the Bolsonarists' assault on places of power

Hundreds of supporters of ex-Brazilian far-right President Jair Bolsonaro invaded Congress, the presidential palace and the Supreme Court in Brasilia on Sunday, a week after the inauguration of left-wing President Lula whose election they refuse .

After several hours of chaos, the security forces regained control of the buildings and arrested more than 200 people, according to the Minister of Justice and Security Flavio Dino.

Read alsoBrazil: what we know about the ransacking of places of power by supporters of Bolsonaro

Jair Bolsonaro is in the United States, where he left two days before Lula's inauguration, refusing to hand over the presidential sash to the man who defeated him by a short head in the presidential election. october.

In a series of tweets, he condemned without firmness "the depredations and invasions of public buildings".

But he also "rejected the accusations, without proof" of his successor that he had encouraged the violence.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva announced that he would resume work on Monday in his offices in Brasilia, stormed the day before.

1. A veritable human tide of demonstrators dressed in yellow and green stormed the country's main places of power in Brasilia, including the Congress here.

EVARISTO SA/AFP AFP or licensors

Sergio Lima/AFP AFP or licensors

2. The area near the Three Powers Square, where the Presidential Palace of Planalto, the Supreme Court and the Congress meet, had however been cordoned off by the authorities, but the Bolsonarists managed to dismantle the barricades.

Sergio Lima/AFP AFP or licensors

3. They clashed with law enforcement.

The police, who seemed completely overwhelmed, tried, in vain, to repel them with tear gas.

Ton MOLINA/AFP AFP or licensors

4. Several images show supporters of Jair Bolsonaro breaking windows in places of power.

AFP/Sergio Lima AFP or licensors

5. The damage seems considerable, in these buildings which are treasures of modern architecture and are full of works of art.

Adriano Machado/REUTERS

6. The Supreme Court has been ransacked.

Unlike the assault on the US Congress in Washington in January 2021, the buildings were empty this Sunday.

Sergio Lima/AFP AFP or licensors

7. On the windows of the Supreme Court that have not been broken, the Bolsonarists have tagged demands: “Intervention now”, “Abolition of the three powers”, executive, legislative and judicial.

CARL DE SOUZA/AFP AFP or licensors

8. A military police officer falls from his horse during the clashes.

Police cars were also targeted.

One of them ended up in a pool of water.

Sergio Lima/AFP AFP or licensors

9. A man hits a policeman with a pole.

Five journalists were also assaulted.

Among them, an AFP photographer was beaten and had all his equipment stolen.

Matheus Alves/dpa/Icon sport PictureAlliance / Icon Sport

10. After several hours of chaos, the security forces finally regained control of the buildings and arrested more than 200 people.

Ton MOLINA/AFP AFP or licensors