Brazil police raid leaves 25 dead

Early on Thursday morning, officers from Rio de Janeiro state’s civil police stormed Jacarezinho, a working-class slum in the city’s northern zone. A bullet-proof helicopter backed the troops as they targeted drug traffickers in the region. The mission triggered an hours-long gunbattle that left one police officer and 24 criminals dead, according to police.

How have people responded? Residents and rights activists condemned the operation as an execution. One woman said police shot and killed an unarmed injured man who fled into her home during the battle. Brazil’s Supreme Court in June barred police operations in Rio slums during the pandemic unless “absolutely exceptional.” The Candido Mendes University’s Public Safety Observatory said Rio police killed an average of more than five people a day during the first quarter of 2021. Felipe Curi, a detective in Rio’s civil police, denied the execution claims and said police arrested six suspected and seized weapons.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archive, read Jamie Dean’s report on Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.