Lula says a coup attempt would not have been possible without Bolsonaro.
The president also stated that it is not his role to give "opinions" on classified actions of the Federal Police.
(Reuters)- President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Thursday that he believes a coup attempt in Brazil would not have been possible without the participation of his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, after the former president became the target of a Federal Police operation on Thursday for attempting a "coup d'état and abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law," along with former ministers and aides from his government.
Speaking in an interview with Rádio Itatiaia, during a visit to the state of Minas Gerais, Lula also stated that it is not his role to give "opinions" on confidential actions of the Federal Police, but defended that those involved in the alleged coup attempt should be investigated.
"I think it wouldn't have happened without him (Bolsonaro). His behavior was very different. He spent the entire time lying about the elections, lying about the ballot boxes," said Lula.
"It's not up to the President of the Republic to be giving his opinion on an action like this. Obviously, there are many people involved, many people who will be investigated," he added.
According to Lula, Bolsonaro's tactic of frequently criticizing the Brazilian electoral process and questioning the use of electronic voting machines in the election aimed to undermine democracy in the country in order to create the possibility of a rupture.
"In reality, it was a tactic to create discredit in society. You demoralize the process, and then you can end the process," he argued.
Earlier, the Federal Police launched an operation in which Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Supreme Federal Court (STF), ordered the seizure of Bolsonaro's passport and prevented him from contacting other individuals under investigation.
According to a source with knowledge of the matter, some of Bolsonaro's top aides, including General Walter Braga Netto, former minister and former vice-presidential candidate on Bolsonaro's ticket, and former ministers Paulo Nogueira Batista (Defense), Anderson Torres (Justice), and Augusto Heleno (Institutional Security Office), were also targets of search and seizure warrants.
Sources also stated that Bolsonaro's former advisor for international affairs, Filipe Martins, was arrested as part of the operation.
In total, the Federal Police are executing four preventive arrest warrants, 48 precautionary measures, and 33 search and seizure warrants. The targets are accused of participating in a "criminal organization that acted in an attempted coup d'état and abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law, to obtain political advantage by maintaining the then President of the Republic in power."
Reuters attempted to contact the targets of the operation or their defense but did not receive an immediate response.
The former head of the Communications Secretariat of the Bolsonaro government, Fabio Wajngarten, confirmed the delivery of the former president's passport and the prohibition against him maintaining contact with the other individuals under investigation.
"In compliance with today's decisions, President @jairbolsonaro will hand over his passport to the appropriate authorities," Wajngarten said.