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Bruno Itan

A reporter who observed the consequences of a large-scale Brazilian police operation in the Brazilian city has reported how local people returned with badly injured victims of people who lost their lives.

The victims "continued arriving: the count kept increasing", the eyewitness stated. The total contained law enforcement personnel.

A particular victim was discovered headless - additional victims were "severely damaged", he reported. Numerous victims displayed what he described as knife injuries.

More than 120 people lost their lives during the security action targeting an illegal organization - the most lethal operation in the city.

The photographer explained that he initially learned about the operation in the early hours by local people from the Alemão area, who sent him messages informing him there was a shoot-out.

The reporter went to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the casualties were being brought.

The photographer stated that security forces blocked media personnel from entering the operation zone, where the security measures were occurring.

"Law enforcement personnel created a barrier and declared: 'Journalists doesn't get past here'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who spent his childhood in the area, reported he was able to enter past the security perimeter, where he remained until the next morning.

He described that Tuesday night, local residents began to search the mountainous area which divides the Penha neighborhood from the neighboring Alemão community for loved ones whose whereabouts were unknown since the police raid.

Residents living in Penha organized the located casualties in a square - the photographer's images display the emotions of the gathered crowd.

"The harsh reality of it all impacted me deeply: the sorrow of the families, women collapsing, women carrying children, sobbing, angry family members," the reporter recounted.

Bruno Itan

The official of Rio state announced that the extensive law enforcement effort involving around 2,500 officers was aimed at preventing an illegal organization called Red Command from expanding its territory.

At first, state authorities stated that sixty alleged criminals and four police officers" lost their lives during the action.

Officials subsequently stated that initial estimates suggests that 117 "suspects" lost their lives.

The public legal service, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has put the final tally of people killed to be 132.

Based on expert analysis, the criminal organization represents the unique criminal entity that in the past few years has been able to expand its territory throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered as a major illegal faction nationally, together with a rival criminal group, featuring a timeline spanning over five decades.

Based on reporter Rafael Soares, with extensive experience documenting criminal activity in the city extensively, Red Command "functions as a network" with area gang leaders forming part of the gang and becoming "operational allies".

The organization engages primarily in narcotics distribution, additionally trafficking firearms, valuable minerals, petroleum products, alcohol cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates are well armed and officials reported that while the action was underway, they came under attack using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of the state, the political leader, characterized organization participants as criminal extremists and referred to the four police officers killed in the raid as brave public servants.

However, the count of fatalities in the operation has come in for criticism from UN human rights officials saying it was "horrified".

At a news conference the following day, the official supported law enforcement.

"It wasn't our intention to result in deaths. We wanted to take suspects into custody without harm," he stated.

He added that the circumstances intensified as the individuals fought back: "It occurred of the counterattack they executed and the overwhelming response by the illegal group."

The governor also said that the victims shown by residents in the area had been "manipulated".

In a post on online platforms, he claimed that certain victims had been removed of the camouflage clothing that he stated they possessed "to transfer accusation onto the police".

A police official from the police department also said that military attire, protective equipment, and arms" had been removed from the bodies and displayed evidence appearing to show a man cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse