RIO DE JANEIRO: Seven people were shot dead on a public square in a northeastern Brazilian town late Wednesday, in an execution-style slaying that authorities described as “unacceptable.”

Local television channel Verdes Mares broadcast CCTV footage showing attackers leading the victims to the square, with their hands on their heads and lined up side by side.

The broadcaster said the victims had been at a bar near the square when the attackers pulled up in several vehicles, with the shootings taking place around 3 am in the town of Vicosa do Ceara.

“Security forces are investigating the deaths of seven people,” the Ceara state’s security secretariat said on the social network X, adding that two others were wounded by bullets.

“This episode of violence is unacceptable,” Ceara Governor Elmano de Freitas said.

Vicosa do Ceara is a town of about 60,000 people that lies 350 kilometers (217 miles) west of Fortaleza, the vibrant seaside regional capital.

Ceara is one of the poorest and most violent states in Brazil, with a murder rate of 35.5 per 100,000 inhabitants, according to the NGO Public Security Forum.

This is well above the national average of 23.4 murders per 100,000 people, according to the latest statistics, which date from 2022.