The attack, carried out by a group of ten armed men late Friday, targeted a community of 45 families belonging to the Landless Workers' Movement (MST). The MST has been cultivating the land for the past 20 years.

Paulo Teixeira, the Minister for Agrarian Development and Family Farming, condemned the incident as a "heinous crime" and called upon the Sao Paulo state government to apprehend the perpetrators.

Gilmar Mauro, an MST coordinator, attributed the attack to escalating pressure from real estate interests targeting land designated for agrarian reform in the region.

This incident highlights the ongoing challenges faced by land reform movements and the vulnerability of rural communities in Brazil. (ILKHA)