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The photographer

An eyewitness who observed the consequences of an extensive law enforcement action in the Brazilian city has described how community members returned with disfigured remains of the deceased individuals.

The bodies "continued arriving: the count kept increasing", the eyewitness described. The total contained security forces.

One of the bodies had been decapitated - while others appeared "severely damaged", he explained. Many also had evidence of stab wounds.

In excess of 120 victims were fatally injured during Tuesday's raid against a criminal group - the most lethal operation in the city.

The eyewitness explained that he was first alerted about the operation in the early hours by residents from the Alemão area, who reached out informing him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The reporter made his way to the healthcare center, where the bodies were being brought.

Itan explained that the police blocked media personnel from entering the affected area, where the police action was under way.

"Police officers created a barrier and declared: 'Media representatives cannot proceed beyond this point'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who spent his childhood in the area, explained he managed to enter past the security perimeter, where he remained until the next morning.

He described that evening, local residents started looking the hillside which divides the Penha neighborhood from the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for relatives who had been missing following the security action.

Residents living in Penha arranged the discovered victims in a square - the documented evidence reveal the response of the people there.

"The harsh reality of what occurred shook me deeply: the sorrow of relatives, women collapsing, pregnant wives, sobbing, angry family members," the reporter recounted.

The eyewitness

The governor of Rio state stated that the extensive law enforcement effort with approximately 2,500 officers was designed to halting an illegal organization known as Red Command from increasing their control.

Originally, the Rio state government maintained that "60 suspects plus four law enforcement personnel" were fatally injured in the raid.

Authorities later reported that initial estimates suggests that 117 "suspects" have been killed.

The legal assistance organization, that offers legal help to disadvantaged individuals, has estimated the final tally of casualties at 132.

Based on expert analysis, the criminal organization represents the unique criminal entity that in the past few years has managed to increase its control across the region.

It is generally regarded among the biggest criminal organizations nationally, alongside a rival criminal group, and has a history extending half a century.

Based on correspondent an expert, who has been covering criminal activity in the city over many years, Red Command "operates like a franchise" with local criminal leaders affiliating with the group and becoming "business partners".

The gang focuses mainly on drug trafficking, while also dealing in weapons, gold, petroleum products, liquor cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates are well armed and police said that during the raid, they came under attack using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of Rio state, the government representative, labeled organization participants as criminal extremists and called the law enforcement personnel fatally injured in the action as courageous individuals.

However, the count of casualties during the raid has faced scrutiny with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights saying it was "horrified".

During a press briefing on Wednesday, the state leader justified security actions.

"We did not plan to cause fatalities. We aimed to arrest them all alive," he stated.

He further explained that the events worsened as the individuals had retaliated: "It was a consequence of the counterattack they executed and the excessive violence from the gang members."

The state leader also said that the victims shown by residents in Penha had been "tampered with".

Via a statement on social media, he said that some of them had been taken of the camouflage clothing which he claimed they wore "to redirect responsibility to security forces".

Felipe Curi of Rio's civil police force further reported that tactical gear, body armor, and weapons" were stripped from the bodies and showed footage seemingly depicting a man stripping military attire {off a corpse