Brazil Travel Advisories Are Piling Up & Brasília Just Had Its Own January 6-Style Uprising

The United States, United Kingdom, Canada and many other countries are warning their citizens to be careful when visiting Brazil after violent protests broke out Sunday over the former president's election loss.

Thousands of people supporting Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil's ex-president, stormed the Brazillian Congress and Supreme Court on Sunday.

Rioters in Brazillian yellow and green flooded into Brasília's Congress and trashed the insides of several government buildings before being driven out by police, the Associated Press reports.

The country's justice minister described it as a "terrorist" and "criminal" attack on democracy, and police have arrested more than 300 people in connection with the incident.

The rioters were calling for the military to step in and undo Brazil's recent presidential election, which saw right-wing Bolsonaro lose to left-wing Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

"On 8 January, protestors stormed Brazil’s congressional buildings, Supreme Court and presidential palace in Brasilia," The U.K. government said in its travel alert.

"There is an ongoing risk of further protests across the country. British Nationals in Brazil are encouraged to avoid political rallies and events where crowds have gathered to protest."

The Canadian government also sent out an advisory warning citizens about the protests, adding that "even peaceful demonstrations can turn violent at any time."

The U.S. embassy in Brazil warned its citizens on Sunday to stay away from central parts of Brasília because of the "violent" protests.

Brazillian lawmakers joined Lula in condemning the attack on Monday morning.

Bolsonaro was called the "Trump of the Tropics" throughout his four years in power, during which he opened the Amazon rainforest up to further deforestation, laughed off the threat of COVID-19 and spoke of reviving Brazil's military dictatorship.

This uprising is already being compared to the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol in 2021, when outgoing President Donald Trump's supporters tried to reverse his election loss to Joe Biden.

Bolsonaro encouraged "peaceful demonstrations" in a tweet on Sunday night and rejected suggestions that he supported the mob attack. He also condemned the "invasion of public buildings" by his far-right followers, while lumping them in with other incidents "practiced by the left" in the past.

New President Lula was inaugurated at the end of last year.

Bolsonaro has been spending his days in Florida, although some, including Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have called for him to be deported to Brazil to face consequences for the riot.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.