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The photographer

A photographer who observed the aftermath of an extensive security raid in the Brazilian city has reported how residents brought back mutilated bodies of those who had died.

The victims "continued arriving: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the photographer reported. The total contained those of police officers.

One of the bodies had been decapitated - others were "totally disfigured", he explained. Numerous victims displayed what he described as stab wounds.

More than 120 people were killed during Tuesday's raid on a criminal gang - the bloodiest action Rio has experienced.

Bruno Itan stated that he initially learned concerning the action early on Tuesday by residents from the Alemão area, who contacted him informing him gunfire had erupted.

The photographer traveled to a local medical facility, where the bodies were coming in.

The photographer stated that law enforcement stopped members of the press from accessing the Penha neighborhood, where the security measures was under way.

"Security forces formed a line and announced: 'The press cannot proceed beyond this point'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who was raised in the area, reported he managed to gain access into the restricted zone, where he stayed through the night.

He reported during the night, area inhabitants started looking the hillside that borders Penha from the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for loved ones who had been missing since the police raid.

Residents living in Penha organized the recovered bodies in an open area - and Itan's photos show the response of the gathered crowd.

"The brutality of it all impacted me a lot: the grief of the families, mothers fainting, expectant spouses, weeping, outraged parents," the photographer recalled.

The photographer

The official of the region declared that the massive police operation deploying about 2,500 officers was aimed at stopping an illegal organization referred to as Comando Vermelho from increasing their control.

At first, the Rio state government claimed that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed during the action.

Officials subsequently stated that their "preliminary" count indicates that 117 individuals were fatally injured.

Rio's public defender's office, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has put the final tally of fatalities at 132.

According to researchers, the criminal organization stands as the sole illegal faction that recently has been able to make territorial gains throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered one of the two largest gangs in the country, alongside First Capital Command, with a background spanning over five decades.

Per reporter an expert, who has long reported on criminal activity in the city for years, the gang "functions as a network" with area gang leaders forming part of the gang and becoming "operational allies".

The gang concentrates largely on narcotics distribution, while also dealing in weapons, valuable minerals, petroleum products, beverages and tobacco.

Per law enforcement statements, gang members are well armed and authorities stated that throughout the operation, they faced assaults using drone-delivered explosives.

The official of the region, the political leader, labeled organization participants as drug terrorists and described the four police officers killed in the raid as courageous individuals.

But the number of people killed in the operation has received condemnation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights expressing they felt "shocked".

During a press briefing the next day, the state leader defended the police force.

"We did not plan to cause fatalities. We intended to detain everyone safely," he declared.

He added that the events worsened because the suspects had retaliated: "It resulted of the counterattack they executed and the overwhelming response from the gang members."

The official additionally stated that the bodies presented by community members in Penha were "altered".

Via a statement on social media, he claimed that certain victims had been removed of military-style attire he said they had been wearing "to redirect responsibility onto the police".

A police official of Rio's civil police force additionally stated that military attire, vests, and weapons" were stripped from the bodies and presented video seemingly depicting a man cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse