The National Bolivarian Armed Force (Fanb), of Venezuela, confirmed this Thursday (14) that two people died and six others were injured, including three soldiers, during a clash between the military and illegal miners in the Amazon region of the country.
In a statement, Fanb explained that, on Wednesday (13), around “400 soldiers carried out the eviction, dismantling and destruction of more than 500 clandestine structures used for illegal mining” in a sector on the border with Brazil and Colombia.
“At the time of the approach, when all the people present were being instructed to leave the place peacefully, a group of miners attacked the officers, with bladed weapons and firearms, and in a sudden and deliberate manner”, described Fanb in the text.
“This action resulted in two people being killed and three injured, in addition to three soldiers also being injured,” added the note, which did not give information about who died, although several NGOs claim that it was two men.
The statement, signed by Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López, stated that all the injured “are receiving the necessary medical attention in the military and public health network.”
The government also reported that dictator Nicolás Maduro “requested immediate action from the Public Ministry, in order to deepen the corresponding investigations”.
Since July 1st, Fanb has expelled “more than 12 thousand people suspected of being illegal miners from the Venezuelan Amazon, in an impeccable action, strictly within the legal system and, above all, with profound respect for human rights”, he stated the institution.
Behind the illicit extraction of minerals, added the Ministry of Defense, “numerous crimes are generated, such as forced prostitution, human trafficking, smuggling and depredation of the environment”, crimes for which the local government blames “Colombian terrorists”.
NGO contests plan to combat illegal mining
Despite the propaganda of the Chavista dictatorship, the NGO SOS Orinoco recently released a statement that pointed out that the Venezuelan Amazon continues to be affected by the activities of illegal miners.
The NGO said that, despite several requests made by the organization, the military did not provide georeferenced locations of the destroyed mines or conclusive evidence of the cessation of mining in the Yapacana hill by August 25.
At the same time, SOS Orinoco identified through georeferencing 3,316 hectares of illegal mines within the Yapacana National Park, and satellite images confirmed that there are still large areas where these operations are still active.
SOS Orinoco reported that it had not received information about a reaction from illegal armed groups, and “the destruction of a few camps and equipment raises suspicions of a possible pact between the guerrillas and the Venezuelan army to create the illusion of success while mining persists through alternative means”. (With EFE Agency)
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