Caracas, November 2, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The Venezuelan armed forces reportedly attacked a camp belonging to Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN) in the Pedro Camejo municipality, Apure State, on Friday.

The military operation relied on US intelligence support, according to Stratfor-owned geopolitical and intelligence platform RANE Worldview.

Local NGO Fundaredes stated the operation involved drones and combat helicopters and left 19 people killed, 10 of whom were identified by the forensic police in the state capital, San Fernando.

Fundaredes’ Apure director Javier García alleged that the ELN uses the area as a drug storage and logistics point. Right-wing news portal Infobae claimed that the attack also targeted camouflaged drug-transporting aircraft belonging to the ELN.

On Sunday, Fundaredes reported “armed clashes” which included drones in the Cedeño municipality of Bolívar State, close to the operations of state-owned bauxite mining and processing company BAUXILUM. According to Fundaredes, local miners were forced to leave the area and operations were temporarily suspended. However, the NGO did not identify who conducted the attacks.

The Venezuelan government and armed forces have not issued statements on the reported altercations in Apure and Bolívar. The Communications Ministry did not reply to a request for comment.

Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said at a press conference on Monday that the country’s army and security forces had been deployed along the 2,200-kilometer border with Colombia to “prevent” any fallout from increased “conflict” in Colombia.

“We do not want any conflicts that are not ours,” Cabello said. He did not address the reports of an operation against the ELN.

The interior minister additionally rejected any foreign interference in Venezuelan affairs. However, open-access flight radar confirmed the presence of US military assets in Venezuelan territory in recent days, including reconnaissance planes spotted flying over border areas.

Since the January 3 US attack and kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro, senior US military brass have visited the Caribbean country, including Southern Command Commander General Francis Donovan and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine.

In June, US forces conducted an airstrike in Bolívar State that they claimed to have extrajudicially executed Héctor “Niño” Guerrero, an alleged leader of the Tren de Aragua gang. Washington thanked Caracas for “cooperation,” while the Venezuelan government issued a statement informing of a “joint operation.”

The Trump administration has not commented on the reported strikes against the Colombian armed group. During a September visit to Colombia, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio referred to the presence of the ELN and dissident factions of the demobilized Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) as an issue that “needs to be addressed” by Venezuelan authorities.

Since taking office in August, far-right Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella has launched a “total offensive” against the ELN, with multiple airstrikes, security raids, and the militarization of Cúcuta, a major town on the border with Venezuela. It has also joined the Washington-led and funded “Shield of the Americas,” a regional alliance with an express goal of cracking down on transnational crime and migration.

For its part, the rebel group has vowed to resist and condemned US intervention in the region.

The ELN is the longest active guerrilla group in Colombia, having sustained a decades-long insurgency against the Colombian state. The organization maintained an arms-length relationship with the Bolivarian government under Chávez and Maduro, operating across the vast southwestern border uncontrolled by both nations and at times cooperating with Venezuelan authorities against Colombian paramilitaries and dissident FARC elements.

The Nicolás Maduro government supported former Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s efforts to negotiate a peace agreement with the ELN, with multiple negotiating rounds held in Caracas. However, hostilities from both sides persisted and the talks broke down.

Venezuelan authorities have repeatedly denied the sustained presence of Colombian armed groups on their side of the border. In 2021, the Venezuelan army launched an operation against dissident FARC elements in Apure State, with weeks of clashes causing dozens of casualties and thousands of displaced civilians. The ELN was widely rumored to have assisted in the operation.