Attack On Brazil’s Supreme Court Leaves One Dead

A man who tried to attack Brazil’s Supreme Court in the capital Brasilia on Wednesday evening is believed to have been killed by his own explosives.

He was found dead outside the building shortly after two blasts rocked the area. Bystanders said they witnessed the man throwing what appeared to be explosives before the detonation. Nobody else was hurt in the incident, officials said.

The area has been locked down and a bomb disposal robot is being used to search the man’s body. Police say they have identified a timer possibly linked to other devices.

The country’s solicitor general, Jorge Messias, condemned what he said was a deliberate attack and vowed a full investigation into the blasts.

“I strongly condemn the attacks against the Supreme court and the lower house,” he said in a statement posted to X.
“We must know the motivation behind the attacks, and to re-establish peace and safety as fast as possible.”

Images carried by news agencies showed the deceased man lying in an area outside the court, as officers cordoned off the area.

“The Military Police robot is searching the body of the individual who carried out the attack, and a timer was identified, and it is possibly linked to other explosives,” said police spokesman Maj Raphael van der Broocke.

“Other explosives have already been identified around the body,” he added. “We need to be very careful to carry out this search and, if necessary, detonate these explosives at the site to prevent them from causing a chain reaction.”

Brasilia’s Deputy Governor Celina Leao told reporters the explosion had occurred after a man approached the entrance to the court and failed to gain entry. She recommended that parliament remain closed on Thursday while investigations continued.

“It could have been a lone wolf, like others we’ve seen around the world,” she told reporters, according to the AP news agency.

“We are considering it as a suicide because there was only one victim. But investigations will show if that was indeed the case.”

BBC/Ejiofor Ezeifeoma