The Brazilian Ministry of Justice has authorized the use of the National Force to assist in the security arrangements for the inauguration of President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on January 1, 2023.
Although security in this type of events is always of paramount importance, for Lula’s team it has acquired even more importance after the convulsive weeks following his victory in the elections, with Jair Bolsonaro still not admitting his defeat and his acolytes crowded at the gates of the barracks calling for a coup d’état.
The National Force is expected to support the Federal Highway Police in escort duties and will be able to roam the streets of Brasilia from Thursday until January 2, the day after Lula is sworn in.
Lula’s security team considers that he should not ride around the streets of the capital in a convertible vehicle, but he is not in favor of making the trip in an armored car, according to his close circle.
For Lula’s inauguration, some 8,000 agents are expected to be deployed. The National Force is made up of different bodies from the different Brazilian states and coordinated by the Ministry of Justice, which authorizes its use on specific occasions at the request of the local governments themselves.
On this occasion, Lula’s team asked the Federal Government of Brasilia to close the Esplanade of the Ministries, where the Square of the Three Powers is located – where the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches are located – as of this Friday in order to search the area for explosives.
The request, which has been approved, was presented after the police thwarted a possible bomb attack in the vicinity of the airport in Brazil last weekend.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
