Brazil security forces raid Rio slum before WCup
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL (AP) — More than 2,000 Brazilian soldiers stormed into a Rio de Janeiro slum complex with armoured personnel carriers in a bid to improve security two months before the start of the World Cup.
As dawn broke yesterday, the heavily-armed soldiers entered the sprawling Mare shantytown, which has been ruled over by drug gangs for decades.
The complex of 15 “favela” slums covers an area of nearly four square miles (10 square kilometres) in northern Rio, is strategically located along main road to the international airport and home to about 130,000 people.
The occupation is part of the government’s “pacifying police force” strategy aimed at taking over some of Rio’s more than 1,000 slums before Brazil plays host to the World Cup as well as the 2016 Olympics.
