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The photographer

A reporter who observed the consequences of an extensive law enforcement action in Rio de Janeiro has described how residents brought back disfigured remains of the deceased individuals.

The bodies "continued arriving: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", Bruno Itan stated. Among them were law enforcement personnel.

One individual was found without a head - others were "completely mutilated", he said. Numerous victims displayed what he described as stab wounds.

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

Bruno Itan explained that he was first alerted concerning the action early on Tuesday by residents from the Alemão area, who reached out telling him gunfire had erupted.

The reporter traveled to the healthcare center, where the victims were arriving.

The eyewitness reported that law enforcement stopped members of the press from accessing the affected area, where the police action were occurring.

"Police officers formed a line and declared: 'Media representatives are not allowed to pass'."

However, the photographer, who was raised in that neighborhood, explained he managed to enter into the cordoned-off area, where he remained through the night.

He reported that Tuesday night, community members commenced searching the hillside that borders the Penha neighborhood from the neighboring Alemão community for relatives who were unaccounted for after the operation.

Local people of the Penha neighbourhood proceeded to place the located casualties in a public space - the photographer's images display the emotions of the people there.

"The harsh reality of it all shook me deeply: the grief of relatives, mothers fainting, expectant spouses, weeping, outraged parents," the reporter recounted.

The photographer

The state leader of the state announced that the large-scale security action deploying about 2,500 law enforcement members was intended to stopping a criminal group called the criminal faction from increasing their control.

Initially, state authorities stated that sixty alleged criminals and four police officers" had been killed in the operation.

Officials subsequently stated that their "preliminary" count shows that 117 "suspects" have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, that gives legal support to low-income residents, has estimated the final tally of casualties at 132.

According to researchers, the gang is the only criminal group that recently has managed to make territorial gains across the region.

It is generally regarded as a major illegal faction in Brazil, together with a rival criminal group, featuring a timeline dating back more than 50 years.

Per reporter an expert, with extensive experience documenting illegal operations in Rio extensively, Red Command "functions as a network" with local criminal leaders affiliating with the group and serving as "operational allies".

The gang engages primarily in narcotics distribution, while also dealing in guns, valuable minerals, energy resources, liquor cigarettes.

Per law enforcement statements, gang members possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that throughout the operation, they came under attack using drone-delivered explosives.

The governor of the state, the political leader, described Red Command members as "narcoterrorists" and referred to the security forces fatally injured in the action as "heroes".

Nevertheless, the total of casualties in the security action has come in for criticism with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights stating they were "appalled".

In a media appearance on Wednesday, the state leader defended the police force.

"There was no objective to kill anyone. We intended to detain everyone safely," he stated.

He added that the circumstances had escalated as the individuals resisted aggressively: "It resulted of the resistance they carried out and the overwhelming response by those criminals."

The official also said that the casualties shown by residents in the neighborhood had been "tampered with".

In a post on social media, he said that certain victims had been stripped of the camouflage clothing he said they had been wearing "to redirect responsibility onto the police".

Felipe Curi representing security forces further reported that tactical gear, body armor, and weapons" had been removed from the bodies and displayed evidence seemingly depicting a person cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse