Two bombs were detonated near government buildings in the Brazilian capital on Wednesday evening, killing one person. Officials said that the sole fatality is the suspect himself.
The incident occurred at the Three Powers Plaza, where the Supreme Federal Court, the parliament, and the presidential palace are located.
According to the newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, the blasts in Brasilia were heard around 7:30 pm local time. A bomb went off outside the Supreme Federal Court, while a parked car exploded near the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the nation’s parliament.
Eyewitnesses told news website Universo Online that a man carrying explosives approached the courthouse and detonated the bomb near the ‘Lady Justice’ statue, which stands outside the entrance.
A video posted to social media reportedly shows one of the explosions.
The courthouse has been evacuated, while the sessions of the both houses of the parliament were suspended.
The governor of the Brasilia Federal District, Ibaneis Rocha, described the bombing as a “suicide” attack.
The fire department and police said that the suspected attacker is the only fatality. Vice Governor Celina Leao confirmed earlier media reports that identified the 59-year-old Francisco Wanderley Luiz as the suspect.
Universo Online reported that the suspect had made threats on social media to politicians and Supreme Court justices. The suspect had lived in the southern state of Santa Catarina and, in 2020, he ran for the city council of Rio do Sul but received only 98 votes.
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