Wilder Fernández has caught four good-sized fish in the murky waters of a small bay north of Lake Maracaibo. The contents of his net will serve as dinner for his small team before they set out to go fishing again in the evening. But this daily task is a job he has recently become scared of doing. After 13 years as a fisherman, Mr. Fernández confesses that he now fears his job could turn lethal. He is afraid he could die in these waters not at the hands of a night-time attacker - a threat fishermen like him encountered in the past - but rather, killed in a strike launched by a foreign power.
It's crazy, man, he says of the deployment of US warships, fighter jets, a submarine, and thousands of US troops in waters north of Venezuela's coast.
The US force patrolling in the Caribbean is part of a military operation targeting suspected narco-terrorists, which according to the White House have links to the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro. Since September 2, the US has carried out a number of strikes against what it labeled narco-boats, which have led to at least 27 deaths. The US has accused those killed of smuggling drugs but has so far not presented any evidence.
Tensions escalated when US President Donald Trump announced that he was considering strikes on Venezuelan soil and had authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela. Fishers like Fernández now face new dangers, fearing that their boats could be mistaken for targets associated with illicit activities. Some have had to weigh their options as they rethink their profession amidst growing risks.
Jennifer Nava from the Council of Fishermen in Zulia state expressed that the added risks may drive some fishermen into the arms of drug and arms smugglers looking to recruit labor for illicit shipments. She emphasized that the recent US attacks have undermined the already fragile security of fishermen.
Mohammed Albornoz, a fisherman with over 30 years of experience, noted that his crew refused to work after news of the first US strikes broke. As many grapple with fear from potential US strikes, resistance also surfaces with some fishermen protesting against the US military presence, expressing their determination to defend their homeland.
As Venezuelans continue to face the multiple layers of insecurity in their livelihoods, these new military actions underscore the complexity of the situation for local fishermen, pushing them towards making difficult decisions about their future.
It's crazy, man, he says of the deployment of US warships, fighter jets, a submarine, and thousands of US troops in waters north of Venezuela's coast.
The US force patrolling in the Caribbean is part of a military operation targeting suspected narco-terrorists, which according to the White House have links to the Venezuelan government led by Nicolás Maduro. Since September 2, the US has carried out a number of strikes against what it labeled narco-boats, which have led to at least 27 deaths. The US has accused those killed of smuggling drugs but has so far not presented any evidence.
Tensions escalated when US President Donald Trump announced that he was considering strikes on Venezuelan soil and had authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela. Fishers like Fernández now face new dangers, fearing that their boats could be mistaken for targets associated with illicit activities. Some have had to weigh their options as they rethink their profession amidst growing risks.
Jennifer Nava from the Council of Fishermen in Zulia state expressed that the added risks may drive some fishermen into the arms of drug and arms smugglers looking to recruit labor for illicit shipments. She emphasized that the recent US attacks have undermined the already fragile security of fishermen.
Mohammed Albornoz, a fisherman with over 30 years of experience, noted that his crew refused to work after news of the first US strikes broke. As many grapple with fear from potential US strikes, resistance also surfaces with some fishermen protesting against the US military presence, expressing their determination to defend their homeland.
As Venezuelans continue to face the multiple layers of insecurity in their livelihoods, these new military actions underscore the complexity of the situation for local fishermen, pushing them towards making difficult decisions about their future.
