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The photographer

A photographer who witnessed the consequences of a massive law enforcement action in the Brazilian city has described how local people brought back badly injured victims of those who had died.

The casualties "kept coming: the count kept increasing", the photographer described. Among them were security forces.

One individual was discovered headless - others were "completely mutilated", he said. Numerous victims displayed evidence of stab wounds.

In excess of 120 victims lost their lives during Tuesday's raid against a criminal group - the most lethal operation the municipality has seen.

The photographer explained that residents first notified him about the operation early on Tuesday by community members of the Alemão neighbourhood, who reached out telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The reporter went to a local medical facility, where the bodies were arriving.

Itan explained that security forces prevented journalists from accessing the affected area, where the police action was under way.

"Police officers created a barrier and announced: 'Journalists doesn't get past here'."

But Itan, who was raised in that neighborhood, reported he managed to make his way into the restricted zone, where he remained through the night.

He explained that Tuesday night, local residents began to search the mountainous area that borders the Penha neighborhood from the adjacent Alemão area for family members who had been missing since the police raid.

Community members of the Penha neighbourhood proceeded to place the recovered bodies in an open area - and Itan's photos show the reaction of the gathered crowd.

"The harsh reality of it all shook me deeply: the grief of loved ones, mothers fainting, pregnant wives, weeping, angry family members," the reporter recounted.

The photographer

The governor of the region declared that the massive police operation with approximately 2,500 security personnel was designed to halting an illegal organization referred to as Comando Vermelho from expanding its territory.

Originally, local officials claimed that "60 suspects along with four officers" were fatally injured in the operation.

They have since said that their "preliminary" count shows that 117 alleged criminals have been killed.

The legal assistance organization, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has calculated the total number of fatalities to be 132.

Based on expert analysis, the gang is the only criminal group that in the past few years has succeeded to expand its territory across the region.

It is generally regarded as a major illegal faction in Brazil, together with First Capital Command, and has a history extending half a century.

Based on reporter an expert, with extensive experience documenting illegal operations in Rio over many years, the gang "functions as a network" with neighborhood bosses forming part of the gang and acting as "operational allies".

The criminal group concentrates largely on illegal drug trade, but also smuggles guns, precious metals, energy resources, alcohol smoking products.

Per law enforcement statements, gang members possess significant weaponry and police said that while the action was underway, they faced assaults via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The official of the state, the government representative, described gang affiliates as "narcoterrorists" and called the four police officers killed in the raid as courageous individuals.

But the number of casualties in the security action has received condemnation from UN human rights officials saying it was "horrified".

At a news conference the next day, Governor Castro justified security actions.

"It wasn't our intention to result in deaths. We intended to take suspects into custody without harm," he declared.

He continued that the circumstances had escalated due to the alleged criminals resisted aggressively: "It was a consequence of the resistance they carried out and the excessive violence from the gang members."

The governor also said that the bodies presented by community members in Penha were "altered".

Through a message on social media, he asserted that certain victims had been taken of the camouflage clothing he said they had been wearing "to transfer accusation onto the police".

A law enforcement representative from the police department additionally stated that "camouflage clothing, body armor, and weapons" were taken away from the victims and showed footage seemingly depicting an individual removing tactical gear {off a corpse