Overview

The Lula Assassination Plot, also known as Assassination Attempt on President Lula da Silva, Operation Countercoup or 2022 Brazil Coup D'état Plot, refers to a failed plot to assassinate Brazil's President Lula da Silva in October 2022, which came to light in November 2024 after a Federal Police investigation. The suspects allegedly planned to poison Lula and kill de Moraes with a bazooka. The country's authorities have indicted the former president Jair Bolsonaro, alongside 36 other individuals as part of the investigation into the alleged 2022 coup plot, which ignited discussions about security and political tensions in the country, as well as inspiring ironic memes about the failed assassination plot.

Background

On November 19th, 2024, Brazil's Federal Police arrested five suspects^[1] for planning the deaths of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin (PSB) and Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes during Operation Countercoup. The Reuters^[2] news agency uploaded a video about the incident, writing that Brazil's army said "current and retired military officers were arrested, including a member of former President Jair Bolsonaro's cabinet." The video (seen below) amassed more than 16,000 views and 474 likes in three days.

According to BBC^[3], Four of those detained were soldiers and, at the time of their arrests in Rio de Janeiro, they were participating in the security operation for the G20 leaders' meeting.

Developments

Bolsonaro's Response

In the wake of the assassination attempt, Jair Bolsonaro^[4] gave an exclusive interview for the Brazilian news tabloid Metrópoles in which he said he has yet to see the indictment and “will wait for the lawyer.” He also posted^[5] his full interview on X^[4], which amassed more than 25,000 likes and 4,700 reposts in a few hours on November 21st, 2024.

Alexandre de Moraes Bazooka Assassination Plot

The police investigation of the coup d'état plot also revealed the suspects planned to use machine guns, rifles, rocket launchers and grenade launchers to kill the Brazilian Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes. The news outlet @Metropoles^[6] shared on November 19th, 2024, a visual representation of the weapons mentioned in the police report (seen below), amassing roughly 500 likes and 172 reposts in four days.

Online Reactions

The alleged assassination plot was widely spread on the internet, as citizens shared their reactions and opinions on the friction surrounding political tensions in Brazil. For example, on November 19th, 2024, Brazilian journalist William De Lucca^[7] tweeted about some of the details of Lula's assassination plot, writing that the suspects wrote the plan in a Word document, printed the plan in the Planalto Palace (House Of Representatives) on the same day former President Jair Bolsonaro was in the venue. The tweet (seen below) garnered roughly 150,000 likes and 14,000 reposts in four days. (seen below)

In addition, memes and jokes emerged on platforms like TikTok and X, with users trying to capture the absurdity and seriousness of the situation. For instance, on November 19th, 2024, X^[8] user @eguafessor posted a deepfake video of President Lula dancing, captioning it as "Lula at the G20 meeting: 'they tried to kill me with a glass of poison…'" The video received more than 261,000 views and 7,000 likes in four days.

Search Interest

External References