Eyewitness Reports from the Killings Site

A journalist who recently returned from the scene of the massacre in the jungle of Huánuco, in the Huallaga valley, gave a harrowing account of the death and destruction caused by a major Army operation against Sendero Luminoso's strongest military columns. The journalist and several other colleagues — the only outside group to have penetrated the disputed areas to date — were careful to state that they only saw 7 bodies and 2 graves. Although the death toll may be significantly higher, they are concerned that unsubstantiated reports of "hundreds of dead" may damage the credibility of the accusations against the Army and minimize the impact of the incident. In addition, the journalists gathered audio and video evidence from an Army officer regarding indiscriminate military actions — killing women, children, and elderly — troops burning villages and using helicopters with rockets and machine guns in what should have been a gradual Army operation.