US sold sniper rifles to elite Brazilian police unit involved in bloody Rio raid – Reuters

The US administration approved the sale of sniper rifles to the Brazilian BOPE unit, despite warnings from American diplomats that these weapons could be used for extrajudicial killings, Reuters reports, citing documents and officials. This is reported by UNN.

Details

The BOPE unit from Rio de Janeiro, which received 20 Daniel Defense LLC sniper rifles, recently conducted a raid that resulted in 121 deaths, including four police officers. This operation was condemned by human rights activists and UN experts, who stated that some of the killings may have been illegal.

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According to Reuters, then-US Ambassador to Brazil Elizabeth Bagley opposed the deal, calling BOPE "one of the most notorious police units in Brazil for killing civilians." Despite this, the sale was approved in May 2023 under the Joe Biden administration, and the weapons were delivered only in 2024.

Last year, Rio police were responsible for more than 700 deaths in total, according to data from the Brazilian Public Security Forum.

It is unclear whether American rifles were used directly in the latest raid.

Recall

More than 2,500 police officers conducted an operation against drug cartels in Rio de Janeiro. Drug traffickers used FPV drones for the first time to drop explosives on law enforcement officers.

Rio police later stated that the police conducted an operation against the Comando Vermelho gang in the city, during which four law enforcement officers were killed.