20 killed in Rio favela police operation

RIO DE JANEIRO－More than 20 people were killed and four injured in a police operation against drug trafficking in a favela in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday, the military police said.

It occurred in Vila Cruzeiro during an operation by the federal police, the federal highway police and the military police, which was aimed at capturing the heads of the largest criminal faction in the city.

According to the military police, the agents were met with gunfire in the upper part of the favela, or slum. They responded and left at least 11 suspects dead. A 41-year-old woman was killed by a stray bullet, while nine more bodies were unidentified.

At least 22 people died on Tuesday, Agence France-Presse reported. A further seven people were hospitalized, according to health officials.

At least 19 schools in the area closed because of the gunfire, residents said.

Police helicopters were also struck by bullets during the deadly exchange.

Police often carry out raids in Rio's teeming slums in a bid to fight drug trafficking.

This time, they said they were looking for gang leaders from other parts of Brazil hiding out in Vila Cruzeiro.

"It was an operation planned for weeks, but we identified criminal movements during the night and decided to intervene," colonel Luiz Henrique Marinho Pires said.

He said the suspects were readying to move to another favela.

This has become one of Rio's deadliest police operations in recent history, since 28 people died a year ago in a favela called Jacarezinho－the largest such toll in the city's history.

Protests sparked

The episode sparked protests and also reignited debate over the proper use of police force in Rio.

Vila Cruzeiro, a favela crowded onto a hillside not far from Rio de Janeiro's international airport, was also the scene of a violent confrontation in February, when police killed eight people.

Tuesday's predawn raid targeted Comando Vermelho, or Red Command, one of Brazil's most powerful criminal gangs "responsible for more than 80 percent of the shootings in Rio", a police spokesman told TV Globo.

Officers seized 13 assault rifles, four pistols, 20 motorcycles and 10 cars in the raid, AFP reported.

Residents and activists have often denounced official abuse during such anti-crime operations, including extrajudicial killings of suspects, which they say, often goes unpunished.

"These operations in the favelas put the entire population at risk and prevent the functioning of public services. We know they would never be tolerated in upscale neighborhoods," Guilherme Pimentel, a public defender, told AFP.

Rio police officers were meant to start wearing cameras on their uniforms this month to film all acts in the line of duty, but the use of such equipment has been postponed.

Security experts believe cameras may help prevent abuse but will not solve all the problems, and their introduction should be accompanied by comprehensive police reform.

Agencies - Xinhua