Thread

If Comando Vermelho were already designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under U.S. law, as Argentina and Paraguay have designated it this week, the debate in Brazil today would look very different. Instead of investigating the governor and police officers who risked their lives confronting a criminal army armed with drones, grenades, and military rifles, the primary concern would be asking a far more serious question. Who protected them, and why? In the United States, once an organization is labeled an FTO, anyone who obstructs efforts to dismantle it — whether by funding, facilitating, or politically shielding its operations — can be prosecuted for providing “material support to terrorism.” Now imagine applying that standard here. Those who stall intelligence cooperation, block investigations, or undermine local enforcement could find themselves on the wrong side of counterterrorism statutes. Treating it as a transnational, terrorist-level threat rather than a local nuisance or political pawn. If Comando Vermelho were an FTO, this wouldn’t be a story about police “lethality.” It would be a story about state accountability for how organized crime has been able to take control of large parts of urban territory in Brazil.