"A state police operation targeting a major drug gang in Brazil has resulted in the deaths of 132 people in low-income neighbourhoods in Rio de Janeiro the deadliest raid in the country's history. Authorities initially said fewer than half that number had been killed in the favelas the Portuguese term for slum. Protests against excessive police force have since broken out and activists are calling for Rio's governor to resign over what local people have described as a slaughter."
"State police said the operation carried out on Tuesday had been planned for months. The sting aimed to drive suspects into a forested hillside where special operation units were waiting to ambush them. The following day, dozens of favela residents gathered in front of the state government headquarters shouting assassins! just hours after family members laid dozens of bodies out on a street in one of the targeted areas."
"Arriving on foot and in armoured cars, police launched a predawn raid targeting the Comando Vermelho (Red Command) gang, one of Brazil's oldest criminal organisations, in Rio's northern neighbourhoods of Penha Complex and Alemao Complex. The gang, which originated in Rio's prisons in the 1970s, has expanded in recent years and now commands territory across Brazil, including in the Amazon. Its criminal activities include drug trafficking, arms trafficking and protection racketeering."
A state police operation in Rio de Janeiro's Penha and Alemao favela complexes targeted the Comando Vermelho gang and killed 132 people, marking the deadliest raid in Brazil's history. Authorities initially reported fewer casualties. The operation involved about 2,500 police and was planned for months, aiming to drive suspects into a forested hillside where special units would ambush them. Dozens of bodies were laid out on streets and residents protested in front of the state government, shouting assassins! Activists called for Governor Claudio Castro's resignation and accused police of a slaughter. President Lula and the justice minister said the federal government was not informed or asked to cooperate.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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