The U.S. government approved a sale of sniper rifles to a deadly police unit in Brazil last year, overriding concerns from the U.S. ambassador and other diplomats that the arms could be used in extrajudicial killings, according to three current and former U.S. officials and documents seen by Reuters.
The Rio de Janeiro police unit that purchased the guns, known as BOPE, played a central role in a raid last week that left 121 people dead, including four police officers. That action drew condemnation from human rights advocates and United Nations experts, who have alleged that some of the killings may have been unlawful.
BOPE purchased 20 sniper rifles produced by Georgia-based Daniel Defense LLC in an unannounced deal in May 2023, during the administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden, according to internal Rio police documents seen by Reuters. The weapons were not received until 2024, amid debate within the State Department about the sale's appropriateness, according to internal Rio police and U.S. State Department documents.
Under U.S. law, gun exports typically need to be approved by the government.
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