Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais (BOPE) (; literally "Special Police Operations Battalion") or BOPE is the

police tactical unit A police tactical unit (PTU) is a specialized police unit trained to handle situations that are beyond the capabilities of ordinary law enforcement units because of the level of violence (or risk of violence) involved. A police tactical unit's tas ...

and

gendarmerie Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (literally, ...

of the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State (''PMERJ'') in Brazil. Due to the nature of crime in

favela Favela () is an umbrella name for several types of working-class neighborhoods in Brazil. The term was first used in the Providência neighborhood in the center of Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th century, which was built by soldiers who had ...

s, BOPE units utilize equipment deemed more powerful than traditional civilian

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms governing that society. The term ...

, and have extensive experience in

urban warfare Urban warfare is combat conducted in urban areas such as towns and cities. Urban combat differs from combat in the open at both the operational and the tactical levels. Complicating factors in urban warfare include the presence of civilians a ...

as well as progression in confined and restricted environments. BOPE of PMERJ is one of the best known units of its kind among Brazil's military police organizations. Military Police of

Alagoas Alagoas (, ) is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil and is situated in the eastern part of the Northeast Region. It borders: Pernambuco (N and NW); Sergipe (S); Bahia (SW); and the Atlantic Ocean (E). Its capital is the city of Maceió. ...

Pernambuco Pernambuco () is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.6 million people as of 2020, making it seventh-most populous state of Brazil and with around 98,148 km², being the ...

, and Santa Catarina states also call their tactical units ''BOPE'', while the military police of the

Federal District A federal district is a type of administrative division of a federation, usually under the direct control of a federal government and organized sometimes with a single municipal body. Federal districts often include capital districts, and they ...

Piauí Piaui (, ) is one of the states of Brazil, located in the country's Northeast Region. The state has 1.6% of the Brazilian population and produces 0.7% of the Brazilian GDP. Piaui has the shortest coastline of any coastal Brazilian state at 66& ...

, and

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, , ; "Great River of the South") is a state in the southern region of Brazil. It is the fifth-most-populous state and the ninth largest by area. Located in the southernmost part of the country, Rio Grande do Sul is border ...

states call their forces "Special Operations Battalion(s)" (''"Batalhão de Operações Especiais"'' or ''"BOE"'').

Significant roles

The BOPE Currently perform a number of roles, including: * Providing additional security at special events; * Break barricades constructed by drug dealers; * Shoot to kill at any criminal threatening both civilian or member life; * Exterminate drug trafficking criminal factions and all of its members; * Extract police officers or civilians injured in confrontations and combats; * Rescuing officers and citizens captured by criminals or endangered by gunfire; * Serve high-risk

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a ...

s; * Hostage rescue; * Stabilizing situations involving high-risk suicidal subjects; * Suppress prison riots; * Support civil police in combats of any kind; * Providing superior assault firepower in certain situations; * Armed patrols around the favelas; * Special missions in swamps or mountainous terrains such as reconnaissance, planning and infiltration; * Engage in combat serving

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

sovereignty Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...

; * Crime suppression to a minimum; * Resolving high-risk situations with minimal loss of life, injury, or property damage; * Engage strongly armed criminal factions.

Weapons and vehicles

The force has a fleet of

armoured fighting vehicle An armoured fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, ...

s, which are known as "Pacificador" ("Peacemaker"), or "Caveirão" ("Big Skull") and one UH-1 Huey. These vehicles are used in operations in the slums (

favelas Favela () is an umbrella name for several types of working-class neighborhoods in Brazil. The term was first used in the Providência neighborhood in the center of Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th century, which was built by soldiers who had ...

) where BOPE face intense conflicts with heavily armed drug dealers. BOPE also operates a wheel loader in order to remove obstacles,

barricade Barricade (from the French ''barrique'' - 'barrel') is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction. Adopted as a military term, a barricade denot ...

s and street blockades. BOPE soldiers are equipped with heavy armaments: * Colt

M16 rifle The M16 rifle (officially designated Rifle, Caliber 5.56 mm, M16) is a family of military rifles adapted from the ArmaLite AR-15 rifle for the United States military. The original M16 rifle was a 5.56×45mm automatic rifle with a 20-r ...

* Colt M727 carbine * Colt

M4 carbine The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO, gas-operated, magazine-fed carbine developed in the United States during the 1980s. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 is extensive ...

* Armalite AR-10A4 * H&K PSG1 sniper rifle * Benelli M3 shotgun *

FN P90 The FN P90 is a compact 5.7×28mm personal defense weapon designed and manufactured by FN Herstal in Belgium. It can also be considered a submachine gun. Created in response to NATO requests for a replacement for 9×19mm Parabellum firearms, th ...

* IMBEL MD97 *

H&K MP5 The Heckler & Koch MP5 (german: Maschinenpistole 5) is a 9x19mm Parabellum submachine gun, developed in the 1960s by a team of engineers from the German small arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch. There are over 100 variants and clones of the MP5, ...

A2, SD3 and K * H&K G3 * H&K 21 *

Taurus PT92 The Taurus PT92 is a double action/single action, double-stack-magazine fed, short recoil-operated, semi-automatic 9mm pistol manufactured by Taurus in the Beretta factory in São Paulo, Brazil. History and creation In 1974, a large contra ...

IMBEL Indústria de Material Bélico do Brasil (IMBEL; en, Brazilian War Material Industry) is a Ministry of Defence quango, founded in 1975, which coordinates industrial activity related to the planning and production of war material through the t ...

9mm *

FN FAL The FAL (a French acronym for (English: "Light Automatic Rifle")), is a battle rifle designed in Belgium by Dieudonné Saive and manufactured by FN Herstal (simply known as FN). During the Cold War the FAL was adopted by many countries of th ...

* FN PARAFAL *

M1 carbine The M1 carbine (formally the United States Carbine, Caliber .30, M1) is a lightweight semi-automatic carbine that was a standard firearm for the U.S. military during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The M1 carbine was produced ...

* Frag grenades

Controversy

BOPE has generated notoriety due to their role in the violent drug war in the

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

and they have been referred to as a "Death Squad" by multiple newspapers. One aspect that has been pointed out specifically is their logo, which bears a knife in a skull over crossed pistols (popularly known in Brazil as "faca na caveira", Portuguese for "knife in the skull"). According to the official BOPE website, the knife in the skull symbolizes "victory over death" and the crossed pistols are the symbol of the military police. A 2005 report on extra judicial executions by the

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in ...

indicated that BOPE was involved in the deaths of 4 teenagers under the pretext that they were drug traffickers who were resisting arrest: "BOPE officers falsified the crime scene in order to incriminate the victims. Hoping this way to make them appear to be gang members. No weapon was found on any of the victims. None of them had any previous history of criminal activity."

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and s ...

declared that "the police forces in Brazil adopt violent and repressive methods. These cause violations of fundamental rights of large parts of the population on a regular basis", and attributes a certain number of killed civilians to BOPE in particular. In March 2006, Amnesty International specifically condemned the use of vans with armoured plating, known as a Caveirão. It stated that deploying the vehicle aggressively, indiscriminately targeting whole communities, highlighted the ineffectiveness of excessive use of force.

Similar named police units of the Brazilian police force

BOE or BOPE are acronyms that can refer to the following specialized military police units: BOE (''Batalhão de Operações Especiais'') units: * Special Operations Battalion (PMAC) – in

Acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...

* Special Operations Battalion (PMDF) – in the

* Specials Battalion Operations (PMMT) – in the state of

Mato Grosso Mato Grosso ( – lit. "Thick Bush") is one of the states of Brazil, the third largest by area, located in the Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible for 1.9% of the Brazilian GDP. Neighboring ...

* Special Operations Battalion (PMPR) – the state of Paraná * Special Operations Battalion (PMPI) – the state of

BOPE (''Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais'') units: * Special Police Operations Battalion (PMBA) – the state of

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-larges ...

* Special Police Operations Battalion (PMAL) – the state of

* Special Police Operations Battalion (PMRR) – in the state of

Roraima Roraima (, ) is one of the 26 states of Brazil. Located in the country's North Region, it is the northernmost and most geographically and logistically isolated state in Brazil. It is bordered by the state of Pará to the southeast, Amazonas ...

* Special Police Operations Battalion (PMSC) – the state of Santa Catarina *Special Police Operations Battalion (PMERJ) – in the state of

* Special Police Operations Battalion (PMRN) – in

Rio Grande do Norte Rio Grande do Norte (, , ) is one of the states of Brazil. It is located in the northeastern region of the country, forming the northeasternmost tip of the South American continent. The name literally translates as "Great Northern River", re ...

state

In popular culture

In 2006, the book '' Elite da Tropa'' was published. Written by sociologist Luiz Eduardo Soares and two BOPE officers, Major André Batista and Captain Rodrigo Pimentel, it provides a semi-fictional account of the daily routine of BOPE as well as some historical events, based on the experiences of the latter two. It describes BOPE as a "killing machine" and details an alleged aborted assassination attempt by some police officers on then-governor

Leonel Brizola Leonel de Moura Brizola (22 January 1922 – 21 June 2004) was a Brazilian politician. Launched into politics by Brazilian president Getúlio Vargas in the 1930–1950s, Brizola was the only politician to serve as elected governor of two Brazi ...

. The book was controversial at the time of release, and reportedly resulted in Batista being reprimanded and

censored Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

by the Military Police. The book has been made into a movie, ''

Tropa de Elite ''Elite Squad'' ( pt, Tropa de Elite, ) is a 2007 Brazilian crime film based on the novel '' Elite da Tropa'' by Luiz Eduardo Soares, André Batista, and Rodrigo Pimentel. Directed by José Padilha from a screenplay by Padilha, Bráulio Mant ...

'' (''Elite Squad''), directed by

José Padilha José Bastos Padilha Neto (; born 1 August 1967) is a Brazilian film director, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for directing the Brazilian critical and financial successes '' Elite Squad'' and '' Elite Squad: The Enemy Within'' a ...

(the director of

Bus 174 ''Bus 174'' ( pt, Ônibus 174) is a 2002 Brazilian documentary film. It is the directorial debut of director José Padilha and co-director Felipe Lacerda. Overview In 2000, Sandro do Nascimento, a young man from a poor background, held passe ...

), with a screenplay by

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated screenwriter Bráulio Mantovani. In 2010 the movie gained a sequel, '' Elite Squad: The Enemy Within''. Two BOPE operators make an appearance in "

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege ''Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege'' is an online tactical shooter video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on December 1, 2015; the game was ...

" as playable operators. These operators are Capitão (Captain) and Caveira (Skull). OPES is a Brazilian special police unit in the online first-person shooter Crossfire. The OPES logo features a skull and a knife similar to that of the BOPE. The OPES were introduced with the release of the 2011 Brazilian release of the game. BOPE is featured on Season 1, Episode 2 of Elite World Cops, a television show hosted by former SAS soldier and author

Chris Ryan Colin Armstrong (born 1961), usually known by the pseudonym and pen-name of Chris Ryan, is an author, television presenter, security consultant and former Special Air Service sergeant. After the publication of fellow patrol member Andy McNa ...

References

External links

BOPE Rio de Janeiro, official website, in Portuguese

BOPE Federal District of Brasilia official website, in Portuguese

BOPE-POI informativo sobre Unidades Operacionais Especiais das Policias Internacionais.*POLICE – POLIZIA – POLITIE -ПОЛИЦИИ – POLIZEI*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Batalhao de Operacoes Policiais Especiais Counterterrorist organizations

Specialist police agencies of Brazil Government of Rio de Janeiro (state)