Residents describe “war-like” scenes as Brazil faces one of the deadliest police operations in its history, sparking outrage and calls for accountability.
RIO DE JANEIRO — At least 132 people were killed in a police raid on Tuesday in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, in what has become the deadliest security operation in the city’s history.
Authorities said the large-scale raid targeted gang-controlled areas in the Alemão and Penha favelas in northern Rio, where police clashed with heavily armed members of the Red Command, one of Brazil’s most powerful drug gangs.
Residents described the scene as “a war,” with sustained gunfire, helicopters overhead, and drones dropping explosives. “It felt like the city was under siege,” one resident told local media.
The Public Defender’s Office, which provides legal aid to low-income Brazilians, released the updated death toll on Wednesday after grieving families laid dozens of bodies in a public square in Penha. Many of the dead were found along nearby hillsides where most of the fighting occurred.
Governor Cláudio Castro said official forensic work was still ongoing but confirmed the number was “certain to change.” Earlier estimates placed the toll at 58. He described the raid as a “historic day” for law enforcement, calling those killed “criminals,” and said the operation had been two months in the making.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said he was “astonished” by the scale of the violence and expressed concern that the federal government had not been informed beforehand. The United Nations Human Rights Office said it was “horrified” by the operation and urged an independent investigation.
Among those killed were four police officers, while several alleged gang leaders were arrested. Police said the raid was intended to dismantle Red Command strongholds, accusing gang members of using drones to attack officers.
“This is not ordinary crime; this is narco-terrorism,” Governor Castro said.
The raid came just days before Rio is set to host the C40 World Mayors Summit and the Earthshot Prize, an environmental award ceremony to be attended by Prince William. Analysts said the timing pointed out political pressure on state leaders to appear tough on crime ahead of next year’s elections.
According to Victor Santos, Rio’s minister for public security, about 280,000 people live in the affected neighborhoods. “This is a war,” Santos said. “Decades of inaction by institutions have allowed organized crime to expand its control.”
Large-scale police raids are not uncommon in Rio, but such a high death toll is rare, even in Brazil’s long battle with urban gang violence. The operation has reignited debate about the country’s heavy-handed policing tactics and the human cost of its war on drugs.
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