&w=3840&q=100)
US sanctions Brazilian Supreme Court judge Moraes over Bolsonaro case, cites human rights violations
Brazil's Supreme Court Minister Alexandre de Moraes talks during Brazil's Supreme Court trial over an alleged coup attempt, in Brasilia, Brazil on June 9, 2025. Reuters File
The US imposed sanctions on Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Wednesday, accusing him of authorising arbitrary pre-trial detentions and suppressing freedom of expression.
Moraes is overseeing the criminal case against former President Jair Bolsonaro, who has been charged with plotting a coup. US President Donald Trump has tied new tariffs on Brazil to what he called a 'witch hunt' against his right-wing ally.
The announcement by the US Treasury Department follows Secretary of State Marco Rubio's statement in June saying Washington was considering sanctioning the judge.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Moraes was sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky Act, which allows the US to impose economic penalties against foreigners it considers to have a record of corruption or human rights abuses.
'Alexandre de Moraes has taken it upon himself to be judge and jury in an unlawful witch hunt against US and Brazilian citizens and companies,' US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
Moraes, he said, 'is responsible for an oppressive campaign of censorship, arbitrary detentions that violate human rights, and politicised prosecutions - including against former President Jair Bolsonaro.'
Moraes recently ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and stop using social media over allegations that he courted the interference from Trump.
There was no immediate comment from Moraes or Brazil's Supreme Court.
Earlier this month, Washington escalated tensions with the government of Latin America's largest economy, imposing US visa restrictions on Moraes, his family and other unnamed court officials.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva denounced that move as 'arbitrary' and 'baseless,' and said foreign interference in the judiciary was 'unacceptable.' The leftist leader said in a statement that the US action violated fundamental principles of respect and sovereignty between nations.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
The visa bans were a response to the Supreme Court's decision to issue search warrants and restraining orders targeting Bolsonaro, who is accused of plotting a coup to overturn the results of a 2022 election he lost.
In a letter in mid-July, when Trump announced a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods starting August 1, he opened the message with criticism of Bolsonaro's prosecution.
Bolsonaro has denied that he led an attempt to overthrow the government but has acknowledged taking part in meetings aimed at reversing the election's outcome.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
20 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Mississippi River helicopter crash: Fears of chemical leak in Alton after barge accident; 2 dead
A massive helicopter crash in the Mississippi River near Alton has sparked emergency response from Missouri and Illinois crews. Videos and initial reports confirmed that the chopper collided with a barge, sparking a fireball. Now, local media reports state that the barges were carrying chemicals and flammable items. A man fly fishes in the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. May 11, 2025. REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett(REUTERS) Reports also indicate that the helicopter struck power lines before crashing into the barge, which was close to the Melvin Price Locks and Dam site. Two people are confirmed to have died, authorities said in the first response after the crash. The Alton PD told Newsweek, "We're working an active scene and have no comments at this time" around 1:15 PM ET.
New Indian Express
28 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
'You cannot act like a crook': SC slams ED; questions low conviction rate in PMLA cases
NEW DELHI: In a scathing attack on the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Supreme Court on Thursday said the probe agency cannot "act like a crook," adding that its conduct must be "within the four corners of the law." A three-judge bench of the top court, headed by Justice Surya Kant and comprising Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and N. Kotiswar Singh, remarked, "You (ED) cannot act like a crook. You have to work within the four corners of law. There is a difference between law-enforcing authorities and law-violating bodies." The apex court stressed that it is concerned about the agency's image and opined that there is a difference between law enforcement agencies and those who violate the law. Slamming the ED for its very low conviction rate, the court said, citing the data provided by the government in Parliament, "After 5,000 cases, less than 10 convictions. Why? We are equally concerned about the image of the ED." The SC was hearing arguments and submissions on the maintainability of a batch of review petitions—filed by Karti P. Chidambaram and others—challenging the correctness of the 2022 Vijay Madanlal Chaudhary (VMC) judgment, which upheld various PMLA provisions. Replying to the top court's questions, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S.V. Raju, appearing for the ED, defended the agency and submitted that one of the reasons for the low conviction rate in PMLA cases is that the "rich and powerful use a powerful battery of lawyers and file so many applications." He added that these accused do not even allow the trial to take place and deliberately delay it. On the maintainability of the review petitions, Raju sought the rejection of these pleas, arguing that they are, in effect, appeals disguised as reviews. "If the review is accepted, it would be tantamount to rewriting the judgment of Vijay Madanlal, which cannot be permitted," he said. Raju pleaded to the apex court that there was no ground made out by the petitioners to seek a review of the 2022 ruling.
India Today
42 minutes ago
- India Today
Cambodia, Thailand allow regional bloc observers to inspect disputed borders
Cambodia and Thailand's top defence officials agreed on Thursday to allow observers from the Asean regional bloc to inspect disputed border areas and help ensure hostilities do not resume following a violent five-day conflict that ended in a ceasefire in late Southeast Asian neighbours saw the worst fighting in over a decade last month, including exchanges of artillery fire and jet fighter bombing runs that claimed at least 43 lives and displaced more than 300,000 people on both sides of the continued despite diplomatic interventions from China and Malaysia, chair of the regional bloc Asean, both calling for restraint. The leaders of Cambodia and Thailand only came to the negotiating table when US President Donald Trump told them that tariff negotiations would not continue unless there was peace, Reuters exclusively Defence Minister Tea Seiha and Thailand's acting defence minister, Nattaphon Narkphanit, met at Malaysia's Armed Forces headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday to thrash out the terms of a permanent cessation of hostilities."There will be an observation team of Asean military attachs based in Thailand and Cambodia, led by Malaysia," Nattaphon told reporters at a press conference after the meeting, adding that foreign inspectors based in either country would not cross the border."Thailand and Cambodia are neighbours with a shared border that can move away from each other... a resolution will allow our people to return to peaceful lives," he and Cambodia said in a joint statement that they would hold more talks in two weeks and then again in a peace conditions were formulated during three days of talks between senior officials in Kuala Lumpur and were finalised on the fourth day in the presence of observers from China and the US."Both sides agreed on the terms of implementation of the ceasefire and improving communication between the two armies," Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said on social and Cambodia have quarrelled for decades over un-demarcated parts of their 817 km land border, which was first mapped by France in 1907 when the latter was its colony.- EndsTune InMust Watch IN THIS STORY#Donald Trump
