'Instead of doctors, they send police to kill us': locked-down Rio faces deadly raids

"Residents described scenes of terror as black-clad security forces and armoured personnel carriers streamed into the favela to a soundtrack of gunfire and explosions.

Houses and walls were destroyed in the ensuing gun battles, water tanks exploded and the power network was wrecked, leaving thousands without electricity.

By the time the shooting stopped, nearly six hours later, police bullets had killed exactly the same number of people as Covid-19 in the Complexo do Alemão: 13.

“We were afraid of the pandemic, but this is even worse,” said Itan. “There were so many bodies it was hard to believe.”

Allyson’s corpse was one of five found inside a half-built house where locals suspect they were tortured before being shot – something police deny. “Their bodies were dumped one on top of the other. We had to carry them out of the community,” said one man who helped remove the victims with his bare hands."

read newstory by Caio Barreto Briso

'Instead of doctors, they send police to kill us': locked-down Rio faces deadly raids | World news | The Guardian