The health of Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro has worsened after intestinal surgery earlier this month, according to his medical team.
The 70-year-old remains in intensive care and will undergo new tests.
Bolsonaro was visited in hospital by a court official on Wednesday, who delivered a summons giving him five days to present his initial defence against coup charges, in preparation for his trial.
Bolsonaro has been ordered to stand trial after charges that he directed an alleged right-wing coup attempt after he lost the 2022 presidential election to the left-wing President Lula da Silva.
In a video of the summons being delivered, Bolsonaro could be seen reacting furiously, saying: “I have five days to present my defence?”
During the alleged coup attempt, Bolsonaro’s supporters stormed government buildings. Investigations by the police outlined allegations he had personal conversations – including with figures from the armed forces – about the idea of a coup to cling onto power.
His earlier intestinal surgery was in response to ongoing health issues after he was stabbed in 2018 on the campaign trail in the south eastern state of Minas Gerais.
He lost around 40% of his blood and had emergency surgery, with the perpetrator later declared mentally unfit to stand trial.
He has repeatedly denied coup allegations and accused his opponents of a political witch-hunt.
A day before he was delivered the summons in hospital, he recorded a live YouTube broadcast from his hospital bed with three of his sons, despite a doctor’s recommendation not to have visitors.
The Brazilian Supreme Court argued that this showed he was able to be summoned and notified.
Bolsonaro had been hoping to contest the presidential elections again in 2026, despite a current ban on running for office, but he risks a 40-year prison sentence if found guilty.
