Brazil's Supreme Federal Court has ordered an inquiry into the sale of protected areas of the Amazon rainforest via Facebook.

It follows a BBC investigation, which revealed plots as large as 1,000 football pitches listed among the platform's Marketplace classified ads. The court is asking the government to "take the appropriate civil and criminal measures".

Facebook has said it is "ready to work with local authorities". But the tech firm has indicated it will not take independent action of its own to halt the trade.

... Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Luís Roberto Barroso has asked the country's attorney general and Ministry of Justice to investigate the BBC's findings. He was already overseeing a lawsuit brought to the Supreme Federal Court by an NGO - the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil - and six political parties.

... And he drew particular attention to the Uru Eu Wau Wau community. The BBC's documentary reported that land inside a reserve used by the indigenous group had been listed for sale for the equivalent of about £16,400 in local currency.

The BBC has flagged up some of the ads involved to Facebook, but the social media giant has failed to remove them. The listings include areas inside indigenous territories and national forests, which have protected status.