Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, center, president of the Supreme Court Rosa Weber, center right, are accompanied by governors and ministers for an inspection visit and support for the Supreme Court headquarters on Jan. 9, 2023.

Brazilian police on Tuesday questioned about 1,000 supporters of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro held at a gymnasium in the capital of Brasilia.

They are investigating anti-government riots over the weekend that badly damaged public buildings in a protest against new President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

The detainees had been staying at a camp in Brasilia that troops dismantled on Monday, a day after hundreds of demonstrators left there to storm Brazil's Congress, Supreme Court and presidential palace.

The protesters were calling for a military coup to overturn Bolsonaro's narrow loss to leftist Lula in an October election.

Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes vowed in a speech to combat the "terrorists" at work in Brasilia. About 200 demonstrators were under arrest and held at a penal facility for their role in the Sunday rampage.

"Democracy will prevail and Brazilian institutions will not bend," Moraes said at the swearing-in of a new head of the federal police.

The protesters held at the gym, some of them wrapped in Brazilian flags, slept on the ground. Some complained to a Reuters reporter they were being held indefinitely and were poorly fed. They sang and took selfies, video posted on social media showed.

Lula, who took office on New Year's Day, met Monday night with the head of the Supreme Court, congressional leaders and state governors in a show of national unity to condemn the riots. They visited the ransacked Supreme Court building, which was the site most damaged by the pro-Bolsonaro rioters.

The former president is in Orlando, in the southern U.S. state of Florida, where he was admitted to a hospital Monday with intestinal pain, according to his wife, Michelle. His doctor said he had an intestinal blockage that was not serious and probably would not need surgery.

Bolsonaro has been hospitalized multiple times since surviving a stabbing during his 2018 election campaign.

Bolsonaro told CNN Brazil on Tuesday that he may cut short his stay in the U.S. due to his medical issues and return to Brazil before the end of the month.

Some U.S. Democratic lawmakers have called for the United States to send the former president back to Brazil.

"The United States should not be a refuge for this authoritarian who has inspired domestic terrorism in Brazil," Congressman Joaquin Castro told CNN.

The White House said Monday it had not received any requests from Brazil's government regarding Bolsonaro's status.

The protesters who carried out the attacks on Brazil's seats of power were trying to either reinstate the former president or oust the newly inaugurated Lula.

Bolsonaro has denied inciting his supporters and said Sunday the rioters had "crossed the line."

Lula has vowed to bring the rioters to justice and promised to punish those police who failed to stop the protesters.

"All the people who did this will be found and punished," he said.

Global reaction

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday called the riots in Brazil "outrageous."

On Monday, Biden issued a joint statement with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as the three leaders met in Mexico City for previously scheduled talks.

"We stand with Brazil as it safeguards its democratic institutions," the leaders said. "Our governments support the free will of the people of Brazil. We look forward to working with President Lula on delivering for our countries, the Western Hemisphere, and beyond."

In response to a question from VOA in Mexico City, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said, "The freely elected leader of Brazil will govern Brazil and will not be deterred or knocked off course by the actions of these people who have assaulted the instruments of governance in Brasilia."

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, a native of Portugal, said, "I was shocked by what I saw. But I must tell you, I trust Brazil. I trust Brazilian institutions, and I am absolutely convinced that Brazil will deal with this situation with adequate accountability and that the democratic functioning of Brazil will move on."

VOA's Anita Powell contributed to this report from Mexico City. Some information came from The Associated Press and Reuters.

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