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The photographer

A photographer who observed the consequences of an extensive security raid in the Brazilian city has reported how community members returned with badly injured victims of those who had died.

The casualties "kept piling up: the numbers kept rising", Bruno Itan described. They included those of police officers.

A particular victim was discovered headless - while others appeared "totally disfigured", he reported. Several bodies showed what appeared to be knife injuries.

More than 120 people lost their lives in the Tuesday operation on a criminal gang - the deadliest such raid the municipality has seen.

The photographer stated that he was first alerted about the operation in the early hours by local people of the Alemão neighbourhood, who reached out telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The photographer traveled to a local medical facility, where the victims were coming in.

Itan explained that security forces stopped members of the press from accessing the operation zone, where the security measures was under way.

"Law enforcement personnel formed a line and declared: 'Journalists are not allowed to pass'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who spent his childhood in that neighborhood, explained he succeeded to gain access past the security perimeter, where he stayed through the night.

He explained that Tuesday night, community members began to search the elevated terrain that borders the community of Penha and the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for family members whose whereabouts were unknown following the security action.

Community members from the Penha area arranged the located casualties in a public space - the documented evidence show the response of those present.

"The violence of it all affected me a lot: the pain of the families, parents losing consciousness, expectant spouses, crying, angry family members," the photographer recalled.

Bruno Itan

The governor of the state declared that the massive police operation deploying about 2,500 security personnel was designed to stopping a criminal group referred to as Red Command from expanding its territory.

Originally, local officials maintained that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" lost their lives in the operation.

Officials subsequently stated that their "preliminary" count indicates that 117 individuals were fatally injured.

Rio's public defender's office, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has put the overall count of people killed to be 132.

Based on expert analysis, Red Command stands as the sole illegal faction which in recent years has been able to increase its control throughout Rio state.

It is generally regarded among the biggest criminal organizations in the country, alongside First Capital Command, and has a history extending half a century.

Per reporter a specialist, who has been covering illegal operations in Rio for years, Red Command "operates like a franchise" with area gang leaders joining the organization and becoming "operational allies".

The gang concentrates largely on drug trafficking, but also smuggles firearms, valuable minerals, fuel, beverages smoking products.

According to the authorities, organization members possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that during the raid, they encountered resistance via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The governor of the region, the government representative, described organization participants as criminal extremists and called the four police officers fatally injured in the action as brave public servants.

But the number of people killed during the raid has come in for criticism with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights saying it was "appalled".

During a press briefing the following day, the official defended the police force.

"We did not plan to cause fatalities. We wanted to detain everyone safely," he said.

He added that the circumstances intensified because the suspects had retaliated: "It occurred of the retaliation they carried out and the disproportionate use of force by the illegal group."

The state leader further reported that the casualties presented by community members in Penha had been "manipulated".

In a post on social media, he asserted that some of them had been taken of tactical gear he said they had been wearing "to transfer accusation to security forces".

Felipe Curi from the police department further reported that tactical gear, vests, and firearms" were taken away from the bodies and showed footage seemingly depicting a man stripping military attire {off a corpse