Brazil’s Supreme Court was evacuated after two nearby explosions on Wednesday night that left one dead in a square near Congress and the presidential palace, police said, stirring security concerns shortly before the country hosts the G20 summit.
The blasts come five days before global leaders from the Group of 20 major economies meet in Rio de Janeiro, followed by a state visit to Brasília by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The first explosion came on Wednesday in a parking lot near the court building. The Supreme Court justices had just ended a plenary session and were quickly evacuated safely, the court said in a statement.
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Federal police said they had deployed a bomb squad to the square in the heart of the Brazilian capital to investigate the blasts. The country’s solicitor general on social media described the explosions an “attack”.
Police vehicles are seen in front of the Brazilian Supreme Court after explosions in the Three Powers Square in Brasília, Brazil November 13, 2024. (REUTERS/Tom Molina)
A police officer told local television that the dead man found in the square had an explosive device on him, so his body would be carefully inspected in case of another explosion.
The explosions were heard around the Plaza of the Three Powers, an iconic square in Brasília connecting the principal buildings of Brazil’s three branches of federal government.
It was the scene of riots on Jan. 8 last year when supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro ransacked the buildings to protest his electoral defeat.
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President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva had left the executive palace on Wednesday night shortly before the explosions.