On 19 February 2020, Brazilian authorities deployed the national guard to the northeastern state of Ceara after a senator was shot and wounded in the town of Sobral. The shooting occurred when the senator attempted to intervene and end a strike by military police demanding increased salaries. Video of the event shows that two bullets hit the senator who was driving a construction digger toward the gate of a police barrack — behind which masked police officers were protesting. The origin of the gunfire remains unknown. The senator was admitted to the hospital, reportedly in stable condition. Members of the military police have been conducting strikes and protests over the past few months to demand pay increases.