Brazil's ex-president Jair Bolsonaro was undergoing intestinal surgery in Brasilia on Sunday after he was hospitalized for "unbearable" pain linked to a 2018 stabbing attack.
The 70-year-old "is currently undergoing a laparotomy" -- involving an incision through the abdominal wall -- "to treat intestinal adhesions and reconstitute the abdominal wall," said a statement from the DF Star hospital.
The surgery began at 8:30 am local time (1130 GMT) and was expected to conclude by 6:00 pm, a source at the private clinic told AFP.
About a dozen supporters gathered outside the hospital, waiting for news.
Among them, wearing a crucifix, was 84-year-old businessman Maurilio Borges Bernardes, who said he had come to offer his "moral and spiritual support."
"He'll pull through, I'm sure," he said, wearing a green-and-yellow striped shirt in Brazil's colors, and a cap with Bolsonaro's picture on it.
The far-right former leader had said Saturday on X that his latest problem was "a consequence of the multiple surgeries I needed to undergo after the attack in 2018."
Bolsonaro was flown to Brasilia aboard a medical plane from the northeastern city of Natal, where he was hospitalized Friday during a tour of the surrounding Rio Grande do Norte state -- an impoverished region and historically a leftist stronghold.
Doctors in Natal initially said surgery was not necessary.
But on Sunday, the hospital in Brasilia said that "new tests revealed the persistence of the intestinal blockage despite the clinical treatment initially adopted."
"That is why the medical teams opted, by common agreement, for the surgical intervention," it said.
The former army captain was stabbed in 2018 while wading through a crowd of supporters by a man later found to be mentally ill.
Bolsonaro was elected president just weeks later.
The stabbing has taken a lasting toll, however, leading to repeated hospitalizations and surgeries.
Bolsonaro said Saturday on X that his doctors told him the latest setback was "the most serious situation since the attack that nearly cost my life."
"Even the doctors were surprised" by the gravity of the matter, he added.
Two weeks ago, the country's Supreme Court decided to open a case against Bolsonaro.
He stands accused of hatching a plot along with close collaborators, including government ministers and high-ranking military officers, to remain in office in 2022 despite losing a runoff election to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Separately, he has been declared ineligible to run for office until 2030 for his unproven attacks on the reliability of the country's electronic voting system.
Bolsonaro has clung to hopes that the judgment might be overturned or the sentence reduced in time to allow him to stand in next year's elections.
The 79-year-old Lula has been unclear about the possibility of seeking reelection next year. His popularity has been slipping, pulled down by inflation, and he too has had recent health problems.
Lula underwent emergency surgery in December to stop a brain bleed linked to a bad fall two months earlier.
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