Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro in hospital for routine exams

RIO DE JANEIRO — Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro was admitted to a hospital in Sao Paulo on Wednesday for what a close aide described as routine health examinations.

Bolsonaro has been in and out of hospitals since he was stabbed in his abdomen at a campaign event before Brazil's 2018 presidential election. The conservative leader underwent several surgeries during his presidency from 2019-2022.

He was admitted Wednesday to Vila Nova Star Hospital in Sao Paulo. “These exams aim to assess his clinical condition, especially in the digestive system,” Fabio Wajngarten, a lawyer and close Bolsonaro aide, said on his official account on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Bolsonaro left office at the end of 2022, after losing a reelection bid against leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Bolsonaro is under mounting pressure, targeted by several investigations for activities while he was president, and in relation to a rampage by his supporters in the national capital after he left office.