They burned the carpet in the lower house of the Brazilian Congress. They raided the presidential offices, rummaged through papers and attempted to barricade inside. They destroyed the windows inside the Supreme Court.
Thousands of supporters of Brazil’s former right-wing president, Jair Bolsonarostormed buildings representing the three branches of government to protest against what they see as falsely a stolen election.
The riots were the culmination of attacks by Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters against the nation’s electoral systems. Many images of the riots recall the January 6 attack on the US Capitol.
Authorities said later on Sunday that the military police had regained control of all three buildings and Three Powers Square. Here’s what we know about what happened at each location.
Parliament building
Many protesters entered the Parliament building, spread throughout the building and made their way to the roof. Video shows Bolsonaro supporters using heavy metal security fences to smash several large windows before entering Parliament.
Once inside, protesters can be seen inside a chamber of the upper house of Congress posing and videotaping themselves.
“This is a historic moment,” one protester recounted on a live stream as other protesters stormed Parliament. This is the “invasion — the invasion, no, the occupation — of Congress.” He added to his viewers, “Give a like and subscribe to my channel guys.”
Local news footage showed smoke and flames billowing from the lower house of Parliament after protesters burned carpets.
In a square outside Parliament, video posted on social media showed a crowd of protesters attacking a police officer on horseback, pulling him off his horse.
presidential office
Dozens of protesters poured into the Presidential Palace, the building where the presidential inauguration took place just a week ago. Some set up barricades to stop police and clear the way for more protesters to enter, and video showed security forces using tear gas to try to disperse the crowd.
Videos posted on social media showed men, some wearing bras with Brazilian flags, entering empty offices that had been ransacked.
Then, dozens of Army soldiers entered the building, and protesters could be seen rummaging through papers on desks.
One photo shows chairs being thrown around and another shows furniture being thrown The outside of the building is on the ground.
In the late afternoon, two helicopters hovered over the president’s office. Officers aboard the helicopter fired what appeared to be riot bullets and tear gas.
Supreme Court
On the other side of the square, protesters inside the Brazilian Federal Supreme Court were seen destroying windows.
A military helicopter flies overhead.
Ibaneis Rocha, the governor of the federal district, called the riot an act of terrorism. Twitter that more than 400 people were arrested following Sunday’s protests “and will pay the price for the crimes committed.”
Ashley Wu and Julie Shaver contributed reporting.
