Yesterday, BOPE raided the Alemão and Penha complexes and broke the backbone of the Comando Vermelho, that criminal organization that for years governed the favelas as a parallel, armed, insolent, and cruel state.
The government of the State of Rio de Janeiro did not talk: it acted. There was order in the combat, doctrine in the execution, and morality in the result. This is how a force that understands that courage is not violence, but justice in motion operates. All of this, in the current Latin American context, is worth its weight in gold.
Narcoterrorism is spreading across the continent: hybrid structures that mix crime, politics, and social control. In the face of that, states have two options: to yield or to fight. The enemy is no longer the common criminal; it is a narco-terrorist insurgent structure. It levies taxes, imposes norms, dictates justice, and administers fear.
When an organization of that type dominates a territory, society lives under an occupation regime. And when the state decides to enter, it does not go to negotiate: it goes to reconquer.
BOPE acted with military precision. And when a state decides to defend itself, this is the result—a day of fire, courage, and justice.
From early morning, the sky of Rio roared with the helicopters of BOPE. They are precisely the accomplices of the narco-terrorist groups. But nothing stopped the advance. The enemy was overcome.
The balance is overwhelming: 64 dead—60 criminals and 4 police officers—81 detained, more than 90 recovered rifles, and tons of seized drugs. The gangs responded with heavy fire, barricades, drones, and burned buses.
BOPE acted out of duty. It restored the law where barbarism reigned. It recovered sovereignty where crime ruled. And it showed once again that authority is the highest form of freedom. Because a people without authority is condemned to be governed by violence. And a state that does not defend itself ceases to exist.
Yesterday, BOPE not only cleaned a favela: it reconstructed the very idea of the state. In every street where the flag flies again, a principle was engraved that men in uniform have always known:
The fatherland is defended on its feet, with determination, with fire, and with honor.
In the last few hours, the figures could be rising to 120 dead, pending confirmation. Control was recovered where it had been lost. It was not a police operation. Combat was chosen, and BOPE was the instrument of the sovereign mandate.
Critics will speak of “institutional violence” and “human rights.” In Brazil and throughout the world. Nations are not saved with press releases or lamentations. They are saved with courage, with order, and with cold blood. And yesterday, in Rio de Janeiro, order was restored.
BOPE did not act out of revenge. It was an urban warfare action. Each calculated step, each measured shot. There was no improvisation or chaos. The CV does not sell drugs: it sells sovereignty.
On the ground, more than 2,500 personnel advanced through labyrinths of brick and alleys dominated by fear.
