Latest news with #AlexandreDeMoraes
Al Jazeera
5 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Brazil's Supreme Court declines to arrest Bolsonaro over social media ban
The Brazilian Supreme Court has confirmed it has no plans to take former President Jair Bolsonaro into custody for now, after it warned earlier this week he could be arrested for a potential violation of a social media ban. On Thursday, Justice Alexandre de Moraes described the incident as 'isolated' and opted against an arrest warrant. De Moraes has overseen a case into whether Bolsonaro, a popular far-right figure, attempted a coup against the government of current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, following his defeat in the 2022 presidential election. The case has been a flashpoint in national and international politics, with Bolsonaro's supporters — among them, United States President Donald Trump — calling the prosecution politically motivated. Bolsonaro has long denied orchestrating a scheme to retain power after his four-year term came to a close in 2023. But prosecutors have accused the former president and his allies of scheming to topple Lula's incoming government by undermining confidence in the vote, declaring a state of emergency to suspend the government's functions, and ultimately holding a new election. Bolsonaro never publicly acknowledged his loss in 2022, and he left the country at the end of his term rather than hand over power to Lula. His supporters, meanwhile, stormed police headquarters in the capital, blocked highways, and eventually ransacked government buildings representing the presidency, Congress and the Supreme Court, in an apparent attempt to spark a military uprising. In June, Bolsonaro testified for the first time in the case, forcefully rejecting the allegations against him: 'There was never any talk of a coup.' Prosecutors, meanwhile, have pointed to testimony indicating that Bolsonaro had received and edited a draft from his allies for the declaration of emergency. They say Bolsonaro even had a speech prepared to announce the alleged coup. The high-stakes trial has prompted a backlash from Trump, who threatened to impose 50 percent tariffs on Brazilian imports to the US, starting on August 1, to force an end to the prosecution. In a letter announcing the tariffs, Trump called the proceedings 'an international disgrace' and compared his myriad legal woes to Bolsonaro's. 'This trial should not be taking place,' Trump wrote. 'It is a Witch Hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!' Justice de Moraes cited international pressure as he imposed a suite of restrictions last Friday to cut off Bolsonaro's interactions with foreign officials and curtail his movements. Already, Bolsonaro's passport had been confiscated, for fear he might be a flight risk. But to prevent him from fleeing abroad, de Moraes ruled that Bolsonaro should be placed under house arrest on nights and weekends. In addition, the justice decided that Bolsonaro needed to wear an ankle monitor and cease posting to social media, in addition to severing contact with foreign governments. Since that time, however, Bolsonaro has made media appearances to show off his ankle monitor and blast the Supreme Court's decisions, excerpts of which have been shared widely on social media. 'This is a symbol of the utmost humiliation,' Bolsonaro said of his ankle monitor. De Moraes accused Bolsonaro of having 'delivered a speech to be shown on digital platforms' and questioned whether it may have been a breach of the ban he imposed. He gave Bolsonaro's lawyers a window of 24 hours to respond to his concerns and warned that a violation could result in Bolsonaro's arrest. Bolsonaro's defence team, in response, denied breaching the social media ban and asked for clarity about its scope. The ban had restricted Bolsonaro's use of third parties to spread his messaging — but it was unclear whether news media fell within that category. In a court filing on Friday, de Moraes ultimately declined to detain Bolsonaro but warned that any future violations of his restrictions would culminate in his arrest. He clarified that Bolsonaro is not restricted from giving interviews to news outlets.
Reuters
5 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Brazil's top court rules out Bolsonaro arrest, for now
BRASILIA, July 24 (Reuters) - Brazil's Supreme Court decided on Thursday not to order the arrest of former President Jair Bolsonaro for an "isolated" breach of court-imposed restrictions, but warned he could be imprisoned for future violations. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees the case in which Bolsonaro is charged with plotting a coup, kept in place the restraining orders he imposed on the former president and clarified he is not forbidden from giving interviews. Moraes last week ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and stop using social media over allegations he courted the interference of U.S. President Donald Trump, who tied new tariffs on Brazil to what he called a "witch hunt" against his ally. On Monday, the justice threatened Bolsonaro with arrest, saying he breached the restrictions on his social media use - including through third parties - when he talked to journalists in Brasilia. Moraes wrote in his Thursday decision that there is "no doubt" the order has not been complied with, saying that Bolsonaro's son Eduardo, who is in the U.S. to drum up support for his father in Washington, posted the former president's remarks on social media to benefit him. The justice added, however, that given that the breach was "isolated," it did not call for an arrest order. Bolsonaro's lawyers did not immediately comment on Thursday's decision, but the former president has always denied any wrongdoing. In an last week, Bolsonaro described Moraes' decision to prohibit his social media use as "cowardice," and said he intended to continue engaging with the press to ensure his voice was heard.
Reuters
5 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Brazil's top court rules out Bolsonaro arrest after 'isolated' restriction breach, but issues warning
BRASILIA, July 24 (Reuters) - Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Thursday decided not to order the arrest of former President Jair Bolsonaro for what he called an "isolated" breach of restrictions imposed last week. Moraes in his decision, however, warned that if Bolsonaro breaches them again, he will be jailed. The justice kept the restraining orders against the former president in place, and clarified he is not blocked from giving interviews.
BBC News
22-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Brazil's Supreme Court Justice threatens to arrest Jair Bolsonaro
A Brazilian Supreme Court justice has threatened to detain former President Jair judge, Alexandre de Moraes, accused Bolsonaro of breaching a ban which bars the former president from appearing in audios, videos and interviews shared on social media. Justice Moraes said the ex-president could face "immediate imprisonment" unless his lawyers could provide a satisfactory explanation within 24 hours as to why their client had appeared in a video shared by Bolsonaro's son, Eduardo, on Monday. Bolsonaro is on trial for allegedly plotting a coup to prevent President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from taking office in 2023, which he denies. Moraes has been leading the investigation into allegations Bolsonaro and his allies committed "antidemocratic acts".Moraes had already imposed a raft of restrictions on Bolsonaro on Friday, including a night-time and a weekend curfew, as well as 24-hour surveillance, to prevent him from fleeing the country while he is on has also been ordered to refrain from contacting foreign governments and their embassies in the ex-president has to wear an electronic ankle tag and is barred from communicating with his son, Eduardo, who has been lobbying on his father's behalf in the United States. Bolsonaro insists that he has never considered leaving Brazil and called Justice Moraes a "dictator". The measures were ordered by Justice Moraes following a request from the federal police and with the endorsement of Brazil's Attorney-General's had earlier accused the ex-president and his son Eduardo of trying to obstruct the trial against the older Bolsonaro and of violating Brazil's sovereignty by encouraging the US government to interfere in the trial. On Monday, Moraes gave further details of the restrictions, explaining that Bolsonaro was not just barred from appearing in videos and audios that he himself shared on social media, but also from appearing in those shared or published by third parties. Shortly after that, Bolsonaro spoke to journalists as he was leaving Congress, where he had met opposition lawmakers. He showed them his electronic ankle tag, calling it "a symbol of the utmost humiliation".Footage of the interaction was shared on social media by Eduardo Bolsonaro and supporters of the former president, in what Moraes says was a breach of the restrictions he had imposed. The trial of Bolsonaro, who governed Brazil from January 2019 to December 2022, is being closely followed by US President Donald Trump, who has denounced it as a "witch hunt". The two men are long-time allies and earlier this month, Trump threatened to slap a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods starting on 1 his letter to the current Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Trump cited Brazil's treatment of Bolsonaro as a trigger for the tariff between the two governments rose further on Friday, when - in response to the restrictions imposed on Bolsonaro - the Trump administration revoked the US visa of Moraes and other Supreme Court Lula called it an "arbitrary and completely baseless measure" and denounced "the interference of one country in another's justice system".
The Guardian
22-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Brazil court freezes Bolsonaro son's assets as ex-president threatened with arrest over social media use
A Brazilian supreme court justice has ordered the freezing of the accounts and assets of former president Jair Bolsonaro's third son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, the latter said on social media. Eduardo, a Brazilian congressman who has been in Washington to drum up support for his father, said on X on Monday the decision was 'another arbitrary' decision by Justice Alexandre de Moraes. CNN Brasil reported that Moraes's confidential decision was issued on Saturday as part of an investigation into Eduardo Bolsonaro's conduct in the US. Donald Trump has tied the imposition of steep tariffs on Brazilian goods to what the US president calls a 'witch-hunt' against the former Brazilian president. A decision showed on Monday evening that Moraes – who oversees the case in which Bolsonaro is accused of plotting a coup – also threatened to order Bolsonaro's arrest unless his lawyers explained within 24 hours why he breached restrictions on his use of social media. Bolsonaro's lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours. Moraes on Friday ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and banned him from using social media, among other measures – which were later upheld by a court panel – over allegations he courted Trump's interference. Bolsonaro described Moraes' decision to prohibit his social media use as 'cowardice', telling Reuters he intended to continue engaging with the press to ensure his voice was heard. On Monday, Moraes said Bolsonaro breached the supreme court order when speaking with journalists earlier in the day, after a meeting with allies in the Brazilian Congress. The moment – which marked the first time Bolsonaro publicly showed his ankle bracelet – came hours after Moraes issued a clarification of Friday's ruling, which stated that Bolsonaro's use of social media included use through third parties. Moraes, in his decision, attached screenshots of several posts on social media – including on news outlets – that showed Bolsonaro 'displaying the electronic monitoring device, delivering a speech to be displayed on digital platforms'. The US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, last week called Moraes' court orders a 'political witch-hunt', responding on Friday with immediate visa revocations for 'Moraes and his allies on the court, as well as their immediate family members.' The court's crackdown on Bolsonaro adds to evidence that Trump's tactics are backfiring in Brazil, compounding trouble for his ideological ally and rallying public support behind the defiant leftist government. Hours before summoning Bolsonaro's lawyers, Moraes had issued a ruling that raised questions about whether the rightwing leader was allowed to talk to journalists. 'Obviously, the broadcasting, re-broadcasting or dissemination of audio, video or transcripts of interviews on any third-party social media platform is prohibited,' the judge said in the clarification of Friday's ruling. The measure sparked debate in Brazil regarding the ruling's range. Bolsonaro on Monday cancelled an interview with a news outlet that would have been broadcast live on social media. The supreme court declined to comment or elaborate on the specifics of that decision. A spokesperson for Bolsonaro also declined to comment, but the former president has always denied any wrongdoing.
