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The eyewitness

A photographer who witnessed the aftermath of a massive law enforcement action in the metropolitan area has recounted how residents returned with disfigured remains of people who lost their lives.

The bodies "kept coming: the count kept increasing", the photographer reported. They included security forces.

One individual was found without a head - while others appeared "totally disfigured", he explained. Numerous victims displayed what appeared to be stab wounds.

In excess of 120 victims were fatally injured in the Tuesday operation targeting an illegal organization - the deadliest such raid in the city.

Bruno Itan stated that residents first notified him concerning the action in the early hours by residents living in Alemão, who contacted him telling him there was a shoot-out.

The reporter went to the healthcare center, where the victims were being brought.

The photographer stated that security forces stopped members of the press from accessing the affected area, where the operation were taking place.

"Security forces established a perimeter and announced: 'The press cannot proceed beyond this point'."

But Itan, who grew up in the community, explained he succeeded to gain access past the security perimeter, where he continued through the night.

He explained that evening, local residents began to search the elevated terrain that borders the community of Penha and the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for relatives who were unaccounted for following the security action.

Residents living in Penha proceeded to place the discovered victims in an open area - the photographer's images reveal the response of those present.

"The harsh reality of what occurred impacted me a lot: the sorrow of the families, mothers fainting, women carrying children, sobbing, outraged parents," the eyewitness remembered.

The photographer

The state leader of the state announced that the large-scale security action with approximately 2,500 security personnel was intended to halting an illegal organization called the criminal faction from increasing their control.

At first, the Rio state government claimed that sixty individuals along with four officers" lost their lives during the action.

They have since said that initial estimates suggests that 117 "suspects" have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, that offers legal help to low-income residents, has estimated the total number of fatalities at 132.

According to researchers, the gang is the only criminal group that in the past few years has managed to increase its control throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered among the biggest criminal organizations nationally, together with another major gang, with a background extending half a century.

Per correspondent an expert, who has been covering criminal activity in the city for years, Red Command "functions as a network" with area gang leaders joining the organization and serving as "business partners".

The organization focuses mainly on drug trafficking, while also dealing in firearms, valuable minerals, fuel, beverages cigarettes.

Per law enforcement statements, gang members are well armed and officials reported that while the action was underway, they came under attack from explosive-laden drones.

The governor of the region, the political leader, characterized gang affiliates as criminal extremists and called the law enforcement personnel fatally injured in the action as "heroes".

But the number of casualties during the raid has received condemnation from UN human rights officials expressing they felt "shocked".

In a media appearance on Wednesday, Governor Castro defended the police force.

"It wasn't our intention to kill anyone. We intended to take suspects into custody without harm," he said.

He added that the circumstances had escalated as the individuals had retaliated: "It resulted of the counterattack they implemented and the overwhelming response by those criminals."

The governor further reported that the casualties shown by residents in the area had been "tampered with".

Via a statement on social media, he claimed that some of them had been stripped of military-style attire which he claimed they wore "in order to shift blame to security forces".

A police official from the police department also said that "camouflage clothing, body armor, and firearms" had been removed from the bodies and showed footage apparently demonstrating a man stripping military attire {off a corpse