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At least 7 killed in police confrontation as army security takeover in Rio continues

At least seven people were killed in a confrontation with police in Rio de Janeiro's Rocinha favela on Saturday and several others were injured, as an army takeover of Rio's security services drags well into its second month – Mar 24, 2018

At least seven people were killed in a confrontation with police in Rio de Janeiro’s Rocinha favela on Saturday and several others were injured, as an army takeover of Rio’s security services drags well into its second month.

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The police said the incident began when a patrol was attacked, though family members of those killed disputed various aspects of that account, according to interviews given to local media.

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The police said that they had entered Rocinha to search for suspects in the killing of a police officer in the slum earlier in the week and that they recovered various weapons following the incident, including a pair of grenades.

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In mid-February, Brazil’s federal government ordered the army to take command of security forces in Rio de Janeiro in a bid to curb violence driven by drug gangs.

The already violent city has seen an uptick in crime in recent years. Murders climbed 8 percent in 2017 from the year before and 26 percent over 2015. Shootouts are a daily occurrence in Rio’s poorer areas, and the violence has increasingly spilled into Rio’s more affluent neighborhoods.

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Drug trafficking in Rocinha is controlled by the Red Command, Rio’s most powerful drug gang.

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The army takeover has not been without controversy. Last week, Marielle Franco, a prominent Rio city councilwoman was murdered in what many suspect was a political assassination, after she heavily criticized police violence in Rio, which many say has been worsened by the army takeover.

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