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Brazil's popular justice minister has resigned from President Jair Bolsonaro's government, accusing him of political interference.

 

Sergio Moro, a former judge who oversaw the country's biggest anti-corruption probe, quit after the president fired the federal police chief.

 

Moro said Bolsonaro demanded someone who would provide him with direct intelligence.

 

In a public address, the far-right president called the claims "baseless".

 

"The appointment is mine, the prerogative is mine and the day I have to submit to any of my subordinates I cease to be president of the republic,"  Bolsonaro said flanked by most of his cabinet in the presidential palace in Brasília.

 

But Brazil's public prosecutor Augusto Aras asked the Supreme Court to allow an investigation into Mr Moro's allegations against the president.

 

The dismissal of federal police chief Mauricio Valeixo was announced, with no further details, in the official gazette on Friday.

 

On Thursday, Moro had threatened to resign if Valeixo - his ally - were dismissed, but then said he would stay if he were allowed to choose a replacement.

 

Earlier this month, the president sacked his Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta for his response to the coronavirus pandemic. The minister had advocated social distancing, which Bolsonaro has scorned.

 

Fighting corruption was a central issue for Jair Bolsonaro in his 2018 presidential campaign. (BBC)

 

Air France-KLM has secured at least €9bn (£7.9bn; $9.7bn) in government aid, as the Franco-Dutch airline group struggles to stay afloat because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The French authorities said Air France would get €3bn in loans and another €4bn in state-guaranteed funds.

Meanwhile, the Dutch government said it was preparing between €2bn and €4bn in aid to KLM.

Major world airlines all but halted passenger traffic around the world.

But they still have to pay to park and maintain planes that have been grounded.

Earlier this year, Air France-KLM estimated the outbreak would cost the group between €150m and €200m in February-April.

Company Chief Executive Ben Smith warned on Friday that the government aid was "not a blank cheque" and would require tough action on costs and performance, Reuters news agency reports.

"This financing will give us the opportunity to rebuild. Faced with the upheaval the world is going through, we are going to have to rethink our model immediately," he added.

The group is the result of a merger between Air France and KLM in 2004.

With a fleet of 550 aircraft, it covers 312 destinations in 116 countries around the world. In 2018, Air France-KLM's passenger traffic exceeded 100 million. (BBC)