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Amid political trouble, epidemics, Brazilians laugh off IS threat

Xinhua, April 16, 2016 Adjust font size:

Amid political and economic trouble, Brazilians took to the internet to mock a threat made by a high-ranking IS member against the country.

They declared that, given Brazil's current chaotic scenario, the IS may not be the most pressing threat to the country. Hundreds of texts flooded social media in the past few days, with humorous comments about the IS threat.

The upcoming presidential impeachment vote was deemed by many as much scarier than the IS. In social media, users pointed out that the possibility of President Dilma Rousseff being deposed and Vice President Michel Temer taking office was, for them, much scarier than the chance of a terrorist attack. Others suggested that the IS could attack the Congress.

In addition, simultaneous outbreaks of dengue fever, zika, chikungunya fever and even H1N1 flu were considered by many a more pressing matter.

The number of dengue cases increased significantly as compared with last year. The number of H1N1 cases rose sharply in Sao Paulo and the zika fever, which causes microcephaly in newborns, remains a significant concern to pregnant women.

Rio-based social media users pondered that they already live with the threat of random shootings and stray bullets every day, so a very high level of violence is nothing new. They also warned that, given the violence in the city, terrorists are very likely to be mugged or killed before they manage to cause any damage.

The IS threat was made via Twitter in November 2015 and its authenticity was confirmed this week by the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (ABIN), which presented a report on terrorism.

The agency assured the public that threats are being monitored, and that both the agency and the Federal Police are monitoring individuals suspected of having ties with terrorist groups.

Brazil will host the Summer Olympics in August and security will be much higher because of the event, which has been targeted by terrorists in the past. In 1972, 11 Israeli athletes and coaches were killed during the Munich Games. Endit