France’s Macron embraces Brazil’s Lula — and the memes poking fun at their ‘wedding’

RIO DE JANEIRO — If social media is to be believed, French President Emmanuel Macron’s trip to Brazil that ended Thursday left him swooning. Pictures showed him and his Brazilian counterpart, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, traipsing through the Amazon and posing beneath the soaring canopy in white button-down shirts. Then there they were again, … Read more

The ‘Taylor Swift effect’ aims to provide water during Brazil’s life-threatening heat waves

RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazilian climatologist Núbia Beray Armond for years had been sounding the alarm about Rio de Janeiro’s need for an extreme heat plan including water distribution. Interest was tepid until a disastrous Taylor Swift concert — and now her phone won’t stop ringing. A stifling heat wave blanketed southeast Brazil the day … Read more

Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro Indicted Over Vaccine Data

(SAO PAULO) — Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was formally accused Tuesday of falsifying his COVID-19 vaccination data, marking the first indictment for the embattled far-right leader, with more allegations potentially in store. The federal police indictment released by the Supreme Court alleged that Bolsonaro and 16 others inserted false information into a public health … Read more

Brazil’s military leaders told police Bolsonaro was involved in plan to reverse 2022 election result

SAO PAULO — Top Brazilian military leaders declared to police that former President Jair Bolsonaro presented them a plan to reverse the results of the 2022 election he lost, but they refused and warned him they would arrest him if he tried it, according to judicial documents released Friday. The testimonies of Bolsonaro’s former Army … Read more

Brazil’s dengue fever crisis is a warning to the world

BRASÍLIA — Patients lying motionless in the waiting room, moaning for help. Desperate hunts for an open hospital bed. Emergency room arguments over medication. Not since the darkest days of the covid-19 pandemic, when hospital systems all over this country ruptured under the weight of the disease, has Brazil witnessed such scenes. But this time, … Read more

Brazil’s finance minister proposes global tax on the super-rich at G20 meeting in Sao Paulo

RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazil’s finance minister told his peers Thursday at a G20 meeting in Sao Paulo that countries should implement a global tax on the super-rich in an effort to tackle rampant tax evasion. Fernando Haddad said tax evasion can be resolved through international cooperation so that “these few individuals make their contribution … Read more

Supporters of Brazil’s Bolsonaro stage huge demonstration to defend him amid investigations

SAO PAULO — Tens of thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro rallied in Brazil’s biggest city Sunday to defend him against legal challenges that could put him in jail. The far-right leader said in a speech that he seeks “pacification to erase the past,” taking a more conciliatory tone than when he was … Read more

Brazil’s president accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, doubling down after earlier uproar

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Brazil’s president alleged Saturday that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians, doubling down on harsh rhetoric after stirring controversy a week earlier by comparing Israel’s military offensive in Gaza to the Nazi Holocaust. Israel has vehemently pushed back against genocide claims, saying its war is targeting the militant group Hamas, … Read more

8 people die in Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro state as heavy rains cause landslides and floods

RIO DE JANEIRO — At least eight people died in Rio de Janeiro state due to landslides and floods caused by heavy rains Thursday, Brazilian authorities said. A 6-year-old was listed as missing in the countryside city of Mendes. Four of the dead, including an 8-month-old, were members of the same family in the city … Read more

Israel says Brazil’s president unwelcome until he apologizes for comparing Gaza war to Holocaust

JERUSALEM — Israel’s foreign minister said Monday that Brazil’s president would not be welcome in Israel until he apologizes for comments he made comparing Israel’s war in Gaza to the Holocaust, accusing him of a “very serious antisemitic attack.” On Sunday, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that “what is happening in the Gaza … Read more