Members of the Huaorani tribe in Ecuadors Amazon attacked the Taromenane tribe on Friday and kidnapped two children, according to reports. Government agencies and indigenous leaders are currently investigating details of the attack.

Gilberto Nenquimo, the vicepresident of the Huaorani Nation of Ecuador (Nawe) said that a group of Huaoranis left their village on March 26 and travelled into the jungle to look for the uncontacted tribes. On March 5, members of the uncontacted tribes of Taromenane and Tagaeri are suspected to have attacked and killed the Huaoranis Ompure and his wife Buganey.

These two tribes, whose language and customs are most similar to the Huaorani, are the last uncontacted indigenous in Ecuador’s Amazon. They have rebuffed missionaries, oil, mining or forestry company workers, government agents and other indigenous tribes over the decades with violence, to protect their way of life.

On March 29, five days after the Huaorani set out to revenge Ompure and Buganey, Nenquimo says they found a structure that contained 50 members of the Taromenane tribe and destroyed it. The Huaorani also kidnapped two children and are holding them in the villages of Dicaro and Yarantaro.

To verify the exact location of the attack, yesterday Caweti Yeti, president of Nawe; Pedro Enqueri, leader of the Pastaza province Huaoranis, Manuela Ima, the women’s representative and two others overflew the area. The had to rent a plane because the Dicaro and Yarantaro communities have blocked Huaorani leaders, military and civil authority from their lands.

Members of the cautionary measures committee of the Justice Ministry also surveyed the area in a plane. They tweeted about their investigation. However, military leaders and government officials have said there is not much they are willing to do to control the area or enforce city laws on Amazon tribespeople.

Original story