Brazil's Bolsonaro awaits court approval to go to hospital after fall

The former president has undergone procedures to treat a hernia and hiccups

Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro looks on from his home as Sao Paulo’s Governor Tarcisio de Freitas (not pictured) leaves after a visit in Brasilia, Brazil Sept 29, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Herculano

Brazil's imprisoned former President Jair Bolsonaro was awaiting Supreme Court authorisation on Tuesday to go to a Brasilia hospital for tests after falling and hitting his head, his wife said on social media.

"We are waiting for (Supreme Court) Justice Alexandre de Moraes to authorise it," Michelle Bolsonaro wrote on Instagram, after saying earlier in the day that he would be hospitalized.

"We are going to the hospital. My love will undergo exams," she wrote in the earlier post, adding that the 70-year-old right-wing leader fell while sleeping and hit his head on a piece of furniture.

Brazil's federal police said in a statement that Bolsonaro received initial medical treatment on Tuesday morning, adding that a federal police doctor "found minor injuries" and saw no need for hospitalisation.

"Any referral to a hospital depends on authorisation from the Supreme Court," it added.

Bolsonaro underwent a series of medical procedures in December to treat a hernia and hiccups.

He was discharged from hospital on Jan 1 and taken back to the Federal Police Superintendency in Brasilia, where he is serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 presidential election.

The former president was stabbed in the abdomen during a 2018 campaign event and has a history of hospitalisations and surgeries related to the attack.