At least 18 people were killed during a large-scale police operation against a gang of car thieves and robbers in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, media reported on Friday.
A total of 16 victims are suspected criminals, one is a police officer and another one a local female resident, according to the G1 news portal.
https://twitter.com/gelos_in/status/1550335489588178944
Media outlets reported that the operation involved 400 officers of special units, 10 armoured vehicles and four helicopters. It was carried out in the Complexo do Alemao favelas in the northern part of the city.
In May, over 100 people are missing or confirmed dead in Brazil as mudslides and major floods caused heavy rains tore through several urban neighborhoods in the northeastern part of the country.
The destruction comes as scientists begin to question whether abnormal rain cycles in Latin America's largest nation could be a result of climate change.
In a Twitter post, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said he would arrive in Recife, the hard-hit capital of Pernambuco, on Monday morning.
"Our government made available, since the beginning, all means, including the armed forces, to help those who have been affected," he wrote.
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