Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: In what has become the deadliest police raid in Rio de Janeiro’s history, at least 132 people were killed during a large-scale operation against drug gangs, according to the Rio state public defender’s office. The office, which provides legal aid to low-income citizens, confirmed the latest death toll on Wednesday.
“There are 132 dead,” the public defender’s office told AFP, while cautioning that the number may still rise as more bodies continue to arrive at the city morgue.
Earlier, Rio state Governor Claudio Castro had put the death toll at around 60, admitting that the real figure was likely higher. “The numbers are still being counted,” Castro said, adding that four police officers were among the dead.
2,500 Officers, Heavy Gunfire, and War-Like Scenes
The military-style operation, which began early Tuesday, saw over 2,500 police officers launch simultaneous raids in the Penha and Alemao Complexes, two densely populated working-class neighbourhoods in northern Rio controlled by the powerful Comando Vermelho (Red Command) criminal organisation.
Witnesses described scenes of chaos and grief as dozens of bodies were laid out in the streets.
“The state came to massacre, it wasn’t an operation. They came to kill, to take lives,” said one woman, weeping beside the body of a victim.
At least 50 corpses were seen lined up along the streets of Penha Complex early Wednesday, covered in makeshift shrouds — some soaked in blood.
Helicopters, armoured vehicles, and drones supported the operation as gunfire, explosions, and fires erupted throughout the favelas. Authorities claimed the gangs used buses as barricades and even deployed drones with explosives to attack police units.
‘Executions’, Say Residents and Lawyers
Residents and human rights groups have accused security forces of summary executions.
“There are people who have been executed, many shot in the back of the head or in the back. This cannot be called public safety,” said Raul Santiago, a community activist from the area.
Lawyer Albino Pereira Neto, who represents several bereaved families, said that some bodies bore burn marks and that victims had been tied up before being killed. “Some were murdered in cold blood,” he told AFP.
Authorities Defend Operation, Call It ‘Narcoterrorism’
Governor Claudio Castro defended the operation, calling it a fight against “narcoterrorism.”
“This is not ordinary crime, but narcoterrorism,” Castro wrote on X (formerly Twitter), sharing videos of heavy fighting in the favelas.
The Rio state police said the raids targeted “key members” of the Red Command involved in arms and drug trafficking.
Human Rights Bodies Demand Accountability
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressed shock at the scale of the violence, saying it was “horrified” by the deaths and called for swift, transparent investigations.
Brazil’s Human Rights Commission of the Rio state legislature also announced it would seek explanations on how the favela “was turned into a theater of war and barbarism.”
A delegation from President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s government is expected to arrive in Rio for an emergency meeting with Governor Castro.
According to official data, around 700 people were killed during police operations in Rio in 2024, averaging nearly two deaths per day.
132 Killed In Rio’s Deadliest Police Raid, Residents Accuse Officers Of ‘Massacre’
