Tabatinga (AM) – The 16th Jungle Infantry Brigade started an operation with the participation of federal and state agencies in the region of Vale do Javari. With the extension of a country like Portugal, the location of the action corresponds to the second largest Indigenous Land in Brazil and gathers the largest concentration of isolated peoples in the world.
Called Operation Jacuixito – an acronym for the Javari, Curuçá, Ituí, Itaquaí and Quixito rivers – the initiative was launched with a meeting with representatives from FUNAI, the Federal Police, local authorities, community members and security professionals, including engineers, biologists and anthropologists. According to General Ricardo Moussalem, commander of the 16th Brigade, the purpose of the meeting was to inform the participants about details of the operation and to gather suggestions.
During the operation, river patrols, patrols of the BR-307 highway, control of critical points, civic-social actions, and logistical air transport will be carried out. According to Major Cunha, operations officer of the 16th Brigade, the soldiers engaged in the operation have completed a period of quarantine in compliance with the health protocol of the Special Indigenous Health Secretariat (Sesai). “After the quarantine, we began the deployment on March 11. When they begin their activities, the soldiers will undergo medical testing and evaluation,” reinforced the Major. The actions take place in the context of Operation Agate.
Javari Valley
The Javari River Valley is a region of great importance for the Amazon biodiversity and is home to many traditional communities. The presence of the Brazilian Army in this border region aims to prevent cross-border and environmental crimes, as well as to help the communities of the Javari Valley through civic-social actions, conciliating environmental preservation and the operationality of the troops of the Military Command of the Amazon.
Source: Army Social Communication Center and Amazon Military Command