A photographer who witnessed the aftermath of a massive Brazilian police operation in Rio de Janeiro has told the BBC of how residents came back with mutilated bodies of those who had died. The bodies 'kept coming: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...', Bruno Itan told BBC Brasil. They included those of police officers. One of the bodies had been decapitated - others were 'totally disfigured', he said. Many also had what he says were stab wounds. More than 120 people were killed during Tuesday's raid on a criminal gang - the deadliest such raid in the city.
Bruno Itan told BBC Brasil that he was first alerted to the raid early on Tuesday by residents of the Alemão neighbourhood, who sent him messages telling him there was a shoot-out. The photographer made his way to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the bodies were arriving. Itan says that the police stopped members of the press from entering the Penha neighbourhood, where the operation was under way. 'Police officers formed a line and said: 'The press doesn't get past here.' But Itan, who grew up in the area, says he was able to make his way into the cordoned-off area, where he remained until the next morning.
Residents of the Penha neighbourhood proceeded to place the recovered bodies in a square - and Itan's photos show the reaction of the people there. 'The brutality of it all impacted me a lot: the sorrow of the families, mothers fainting, pregnant wives, crying, outraged parents,' the photographer recalled.
The governor of Rio state said that the massive police operation involving around 2,500 security personnel was aimed at stopping a criminal group known as Comando Vermelho (Red Command) from expanding its territory. Initially, the Rio state government maintained that '60 suspects and four police officers' had been killed in the operation. They have since said that their 'preliminary' count shows that 117 'suspects' have been killed. According to researchers, Red Command is the only criminal group which in recent years has managed to make territorial gains in Rio de Janeiro.
The situation has escalated into international criticism, with the United Nations calling the death toll horrifying. Governor Castro defended the police, blaming the circumstances on the suspects' retaliation. He has since been called to explain police actions at a Supreme Court hearing.
Bruno Itan told BBC Brasil that he was first alerted to the raid early on Tuesday by residents of the Alemão neighbourhood, who sent him messages telling him there was a shoot-out. The photographer made his way to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the bodies were arriving. Itan says that the police stopped members of the press from entering the Penha neighbourhood, where the operation was under way. 'Police officers formed a line and said: 'The press doesn't get past here.' But Itan, who grew up in the area, says he was able to make his way into the cordoned-off area, where he remained until the next morning.
Residents of the Penha neighbourhood proceeded to place the recovered bodies in a square - and Itan's photos show the reaction of the people there. 'The brutality of it all impacted me a lot: the sorrow of the families, mothers fainting, pregnant wives, crying, outraged parents,' the photographer recalled.
The governor of Rio state said that the massive police operation involving around 2,500 security personnel was aimed at stopping a criminal group known as Comando Vermelho (Red Command) from expanding its territory. Initially, the Rio state government maintained that '60 suspects and four police officers' had been killed in the operation. They have since said that their 'preliminary' count shows that 117 'suspects' have been killed. According to researchers, Red Command is the only criminal group which in recent years has managed to make territorial gains in Rio de Janeiro.
The situation has escalated into international criticism, with the United Nations calling the death toll horrifying. Governor Castro defended the police, blaming the circumstances on the suspects' retaliation. He has since been called to explain police actions at a Supreme Court hearing.
