On Tuesday, October 28, 2025, the city of Rio de Janeiro was shaken by the deadliest police operation in its history, as authorities launched a massive raid targeting the Red Command, a powerful drug trafficking gang entrenched in the favelas of Alemão and Penha. The fallout from the operation has been swift and intense, with the official death toll rising to 132 according to Rio’s public defender’s office—more than double the initial figure released by police. The raid, intended as a decisive blow against organized crime, has instead ignited fierce debate, widespread protest, and international condemnation.
According to BBC News and the Associated Press, the police operation unfolded in the early hours of Tuesday, involving approximately 2,500 heavily armed officers and soldiers who fanned out through the steep, narrow lanes of the densely populated hillside neighborhoods. The stated goal: to capture key leaders of the Red Command and stem the gang’s territorial expansion, which has been accelerating in recent years, not just in Rio but across Brazil, including the Amazon rainforest.
But the operation quickly spiraled into chaos. Residents described scenes reminiscent of war, with gunfire echoing through the streets, buses set ablaze to create barricades, and, in a chilling escalation, gang members deploying drones to drop explosives on advancing police units. "This is how the Rio police are treated by criminals: with bombs dropped by drones. This is the scale of the challenge we face. This is not ordinary crime, but narco-terrorism," Governor Cláudio Castro declared, as reported by BBC News.
By the end of the day, the city was left reeling. Four police officers were among the dead, and the number of civilian casualties quickly outstripped anything seen in previous raids. Early Wednesday morning, grieving residents carried dozens of bodies to a square in Penha, lining them up in a stark display of the raid’s human cost. Local media estimates varied, but the public defender’s office ultimately put the death toll at 132, a figure that dwarfed the 58 deaths initially cited by Governor Castro, who cautioned that forensic work was ongoing and the number was "certain to change."
The shockwaves from the raid reverberated far beyond Rio’s favelas. Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was reportedly “astonished” by the scale of the casualties and expressed surprise that the federal government had not been notified in advance of the operation, according to Brazil’s justice minister. The United Nations Human Rights office was quick to condemn the events, stating it was "horrified" by the police action and the unprecedented loss of life.
As the city prepared to host the C40 World Mayors Summit and the prestigious Earthshot Prize just days later, the raid cast a long shadow over Rio’s international image. The timing of the operation, so close to these global events, raised eyebrows and fueled speculation about political motivations. Rafael Soares, a journalist specializing in crime reporting, told BBC News Brasil that the raid was widely seen as part of Governor Castro’s efforts to make a mark in the fight against crime ahead of the 2026 elections.
The official narrative from the state government has been unequivocal. Governor Castro, an ally of former President Jair Bolsonaro and a vocal opponent of President Lula, insisted the operation was a success and that those killed were criminals who resisted arrest. "To be quite honest with you, the conflict wasn't in a built-up area, it was all in the woods. So I don't believe anyone was just strolling in the woods on a day of conflict. And that's why we can easily classify them," Castro told reporters, defending his earlier remarks labeling the deceased as criminals.
Yet, this stance has done little to quell public outrage. On Friday, October 31, hundreds of protesters marched through Vila Cruzeiro, part of the Penha complex, demanding Governor Castro’s resignation. The Associated Press reported that locals, politicians, activists, and grieving mothers—many of whom had lost sons in previous police operations—joined together, accusing law enforcement of torture and extrajudicial killings. "Coward, terrorist, assassin! His hands are dirty with blood," said Anne Caroline Dos Santos, a protester from Rocinha, voicing the anger felt by many in the community.
Signs bearing slogans like “stop killing us” and T-shirts emblazoned with red handprints were ubiquitous. Many protesters wore white, a symbol of their desire for peace. The streets still bore the scars of the raid: burned-out cars used as barricades and shuttered shops, some only just reopening after the violence subsided. Leandro Santiago, a delivery driver from Vila Cruzeiro, summed up the sentiment: "This is a disgrace to Brazil. Nothing justifies this."
The operation’s brutality has been called into question not only by residents but also by legal experts and human rights advocates. Reports surfaced of bodies found decapitated, with puncture wounds or tied up, suggesting possible extrajudicial executions. Adriana Miranda, a lawyer attending Friday’s protest, emphasized the rule of law: "Even if the young men killed were suspected of participating in organized crime, they still had rights. Suspicions need to be investigated. There is a whole procedure established in the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure that must be followed. The constitution guarantees everyone’s rights."
Political divisions have deepened in the raid’s aftermath. While some in Brazil—particularly among right-leaning politicians and voters—applauded the police’s aggressive stance against the Red Command, others questioned whether the operation would have any lasting impact on organized crime. Critics pointed out that many of those killed were low-ranking members, easily replaced by the gang’s vast network. On Friday, the state government announced that of the 99 suspects identified so far, 42 had outstanding arrest warrants and at least 78 had extensive criminal records. However, the newspaper O Globo reported that none of the 99 names had been indicted by the public prosecutor’s office in the investigation that justified the operation.
The Supreme Court has taken notice. Justice Alexandre de Moraes scheduled a hearing with Governor Castro and the heads of Rio’s military and civil police for November 3, demanding detailed information about the raid. Human rights groups, both domestic and international, have intensified calls for accountability and a thorough investigation into the conduct of law enforcement during the operation.
As the dust settles over Alemão and Penha, the city faces a reckoning. The raid has exposed deep rifts in Brazilian society—between those demanding tougher action against crime and those decrying the cost in human lives and civil liberties. For the 280,000 residents of the affected neighborhoods, according to Rio’s Minister for Public Security Victor Santos, the trauma is far from over. “This is a war we are seeing in Rio de Janeiro. Decades of inaction by all the institutions—municipal, state and federal—have allowed crime to expand in our territory,” Santos told BBC News Brasil.
The events of October 28 have left an indelible mark on Rio de Janeiro, raising urgent questions about the balance between public security and human rights, and whether the city’s long war against organized crime can ever truly be won without a fundamental shift in strategy and priorities.
