We publish an unofficial translation of an article by A Nova Democracia (AND) which gives an impression of the genocidal police operation in Rio which was conducted on July 21st. Also videos on Twitter give an impression of how this massacre was conducted: Video 1, Video 2, Video 3
URGENT: Police officers terrorize Complexo do Alemão residents with killings, home invasions and violation of rights
A woman was killed after being shot by Core and BOPE officers during a genocidal operation in Complexo do Alemão that began at 5 a.m. on July 21. The "security" forces claim that more than 400 police officers participated in the invasion. A policeman was killed in Fazendinha, one of the Complexo do Alemão communities, in the very first hours of the operation, resulting in new attacks by the reactionary military. It is the infamous tactic of revenge operations, again repeated by the police apparatus of Rio de Janeiro, bringing terror to the more than 180,000 residents of the Complexo do Alemão slums.
Letícia Marinho do Sales, 50, was shot in the chest as she and her boyfriend were driving along Itararé Road, the main access road to the community. As she stopped at a traffic light, police officers simply reached out with rifles and pistols and shot in the direction of the woman, who leaves three children and a grandchild. Family members of the worker reported that no shooting was taking place at the moment and that the officers gave no explanation for the shooting.
Residents were forced to take shelter in their homes during the terrorist action of Claudio Castro's police. Recordings made denounce that the military agents invaded homes, violating any remnant of the right to the inviolability of the homes of the community workers.
The police invaded dozens of houses in the first hours of the operation alone. Reports received by the editorial staff of AND indicate that at least 10 Caveirões [armored vehicles of the Military Police – translators note] are circulating in the Complexo do Alemão. An elderly woman was killed while she was at the bus stop.
In Grota, one of the neighborhoods of Complexo do Alemão, the residents are cornered and seeking shelter in the shops, because the "Caveirão" entered after the containment barriers and there is an intense exchange of fire. In addition, police invaded houses and, when questioned by a resident about the judicial warrant that allowed the entry, an officer replied that "it is legally supported by a state of necessity."
During the shootout, houses were completely destroyed, either by the invasion of the police and the destruction of entire rooms to transform them into improvised military bases, or by the bullets fired by reactionary agents that hit and destroyed doors, windows, walls, and furniture of the residents.
At the time of writing, there have already been reports of at least ten deaths.
The terrorist operation by Claudio Castro's MP
The Caveirões (armored vehicles used by the police forces) arrived at the Complexo do Alemão before dawn. The objective of the joint operation between the Military Police and the Civil Police was to combat vehicle, cargo, and bank robberies. In the first hours of the invasion, a police officer died and a base of the Pacifying Police Unit (UPP) was attacked. To prevent the police from entering, barricades were erected, and oil was thrown onto the access roads. Still, the police insisted and intense shooting has been going on since the early morning hours.
Besides the operation in Alemão, the Military Police are also conducting other operations in Vicente de Carvalho and Tomas Coelho, nearby neighborhoods. In total there are 11 operations in different communities. The 41st MP Battalion, in Irajá, together with the 9th BPM, Rocha Miranda, 14th, 31st, 27th and 40th (respectively Bangu, Recreio, Santa Cruz and Campo Grande) are being mobilized. All this huge contingent of police officers from battalions located in distant neighborhoods shows that this is a mega operation whose results will be the same as always: residents trapped in their homes, workers killed, and the continuation of the policy of unrestrained genocide and state terrorism.
