Brazil ex-president Bolsonaro’s surgery for hernia ‘successful’

Brazil’s jailed former president Jair Bolsonaro had a successful surgery for a double hernia, his wife Michelle said.

The former leader is serving a 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 presidential election to leftist rival Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Brazil’s Supreme Court allowed the 70-year-old to be transferred from the room at the federal police headquarters where he was serving his sentence to a hospital in the capital Brasília for processing.

Before the surgery, Jair Bolsonaro approved his eldest son Flávio’s candidacy for the 2026 presidential race.

The former president announced his decision in a handwritten letter that Fávio Bolsonaro read outside the hospital where his father was being treated.

“All my life, I have fought hard battles to defend what I thought was best for our country, at a high cost in both my health and my family,” Bolsonaro wrote.

“I surrender the most important thing in a father’s life, my own son, to the mission of saving our country, Brazil.”

44-year-old senator Flávio Bolsonaro has already announced his father’s decision to run for president on behalf of the Liberal Party.

Earlier this month, he said his father had entrusted him with “the mission of continuing our national project.” However, Jair Bolsonaro’s letter published in Brazilian media confirms that the senator has the support of his father.

Incumbent President Lula has already announced that he plans to run again in the presidential election scheduled for October 2026.

In 2022, the presidential elections were held in the second round, with the elder Bolsonaro competing against former President Lula.

When Lula narrowly won, Jair Bolsonaro refused to accept the result and conspired with senior military leaders to prevent Lula from taking office.

The conspiracy culminated in an attack on government buildings by Bolsonaro supporters on January 8, 2023, although it failed to secure sufficient support from the military.

Bolsonaro was found guilty of plotting a coup in September this year and sentenced to prison.

Despite the guilty verdict, the elder Bolsonaro still wields considerable political influence.

Brazil’s Congress passed a bill last week that would significantly shorten Bolsonaro’s sentence, but President Lula said he would veto it.

Jair Bolsonaro is expected to be returned to the federal police headquarters as soon as doctors give permission.