Political crisis in Brazil deepens

Brazil’s political crisis deepened as judges filed injunctions to block the appointment of former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as chief of staff to his successor following a tumultuous swearing-in ceremony and heated protests.

The first of the injunctions was overturned by a higher court, the state-run Agencia Brasil news agency said. But another was issued immediately by a second judge in Rio de Janeiro, adding to the country’s political confusion.

President Dilma Rousseff’s opponents accuse her of trying to help the once-popular Silva avoid legal woes. He was taken in for questioning in a sprawling corruption probe less than two weeks ago.