Dutch PM expresses support for Brazilian president after attempted coup

Prime Minister Mark Rutte expressed support for president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as the “democratically elected leader” of Brazil after an attempted coup in the South American country on Sunday. Supporters of former far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro stormed and occupied the country’s Congress, presidential palace, and Supreme Court, BBC reports.

Thousands of protesters occupied the three buildings in Brazil’s capital on Sunday. They refuse to accept that Bolsonaro lost the presidential election to Lula in October and have been calling for military intervention and Lula’s resignation.

Prime Minister Rutte watched the storming of government buildings with “horror,” he said on Twitter. “Unacceptable violence against the institutions that together from the heart of the democratic constitutional state. We stand with President Lula as the democratically elected leader,” the Dutch Prime Minister said.

The Brazilian security forces have since regained control of Congress in Brasilia, the BBC reported. The police used tear gas to push back the masses and arrested hundreds of people.

Lula, who is currently on a state visit to Sao Paulo, called the rioters “fanatic fascists” and vowed that they'd be punished. Bolsonaro also condemned the “invasion of public buildings.”