Dozens killed in week of deadly police operations in Brazil
- Rio de Janeiro favela complex was like a war zone as police targeted gangs in a raid, leaving nine people dead
- Brazil, the country with the highest number of murders in the world, is also home to some of the most deadly police forces
Nine people were killed on Wednesday in a police operation targeting criminal gangs in Rio de Janeiro, authorities said, the latest in a week of security force raids that have left at least 44 dead across Brazil.
The Rio raid came after days of deadly police crackdowns on drug trafficking gangs that have left 16 dead in Sao Paulo state and 19 killed in the northeastern state of Bahia.
Rio state police said officers had returned fire after coming under attack during a raid on a meeting of organised crime bosses in the Complexo da Penha group of favelas, on the city’s north side.
Authorities face mounting calls for independent investigations of alleged police abuses in Brazil, where the security forces have been accused of human-rights violations in their war with heavily armed drug gangs.
Police said the Rio operation came after officers received intelligence on a high-level meeting by gang leaders.
“A clash occurred when police teams came under attack by gunmen at the scene,” state police said in a statement.