Brazil’s Deadliest Police Raid Kills at Least 119 in Rio de Janeiro

Brazil’s Deadliest Police Raid Kills at Least 119 in Rio de Janeiro
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At least 119 people were killed in a police operation targeting a major drug gang in Rio de Janeiro, marking the deadliest raid in Brazil’s history, authorities said on Wednesday, as reported by Reuters. Residents in the Penha neighborhood lined streets with dozens of corpses recovered from surrounding forests, highlighting the scale of the violence just a week before Rio hosts global climate events.

State police said the raids were planned over more than two months to drive gang members into a forested hillside where a special operations unit awaited. Authorities confirmed four police officers also died, while public defenders indicated the death toll could rise to at least 132.

Police arrested 113 suspects and seized 118 firearms during the operation, which targeted the Comando Vermelho gang. Relatives and human rights lawyers reported signs of summary executions, including bound limbs, knife wounds, and gunshot injuries to the face and neck. UN officials criticized the raid, calling it part of a trend of highly lethal police actions in marginalized communities, and urged prompt investigations in line with international human rights law.

Rio Governor Claudio Castro defended the operation, stating those killed were armed criminals, while President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva expressed concern that the federal government had not been informed beforehand. Justice Minister Ricardo Lewandowski said he would meet with the governor and consider increasing federal security presence.

The scale of the raid surpasses previous deadly police operations in Brazil, including a 2021 raid in Jacarezinho that left 28 dead and the 1992 Carandiru prison assault that killed 111 prisoners. Families and local residents have staged protests condemning the violence and demanding accountability.