Venezuelan Army Bombed ELN Camp on the Border with Colombia

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Issue Oct 28-Nov 03 2026: Local reports indicated clashes between the Venezuelan Army and the ELN in the Buena Vista sector of the Meta area, in Venezuela’s Apure state, near the border with Colombia. The bombing reportedly left several people dead.

In El Tiempo of Bogotá, Elim Johana Alonso Dorado wrote that a report by former National Assembly deputy Juan Francisco García Escalona, who also serves as the coordinator for the organization Fundaredes in Apure state, preliminarily indicated that at least nine bodies were transported to San Fernando for forensic procedures. Additionally, ten other individuals reportedly died at the scene, and an undetermined number of wounded people were taken into Colombian territory.

Although initial accounts suggested that several ELN members had been killed, there was no official information. This development is unusual, given the scarcity of records regarding large-scale operations by the Venezuelan Army against armed groups operating in that part of the neighboring country. However, reports have emerged, dating back approximately twenty days, of tensions involving Indigenous residents, as well as disputes over the control of areas used for the illegal extraction of bauxite and coltan. Furthermore, the region is reportedly being used as a rear base and staging point for drug trafficking, according to allegations made by García Escalona.

Residents of Puerto Páez provided names and details from documents discovered at the site of the affected camp. The records belong to Jesús Javier Brugal Carrero and Juan Carlos Guerrero Márquez.

Additionally, Venezuelan driver’s licenses were reported, issued to Jesús Javier Brugal Carrero, Wilden Luis Solórzano Camacho, and Gabriel Carlos Brugal. Among the recovered items was also a “Signature Aviation” credential bearing the label “Guest Experience”—a company linked by sources to operations at Miami International Airport (MIA). “The communities need answers; the urgent priority is to clarify what happened, protect the civilian population, and identify the victims through verifiable procedures, while ensuring their families are notified,” the former legislator stated.

Residents of the Indigenous communities of Punta Brava and La Batea have reported the presence of individuals allegedly belonging to the “Second Marquetalia” faction of the FARC, who have reportedly occupied the school’s premises. According to these reports, the presence of these individuals has caused fear and unease among the local population. The daily setup of illegal checkpoints, the detention of residents, and nighttime incursions into the communities are disrupting the safety and peace of these Indigenous families.