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 last month, the US has conducted at least six strikes on suspected drug-carrying boats in the Caribbean, with the latest being carried out on Thursday. At least 27 people have been killed, but Thursday's strike appeared to be the first to have survivors aboard the boat.
The US has accused those killed of smuggling drugs but has so far not presented any evidence. Experts have suggested the strikes could be illegal under international law. Tensions between the US and Venezuela escalated further on Wednesday when US President Donald Trump said that he was considering strikes on Venezuelan soil. He also confirmed that he had authorized the CIA to carry out covert operations inside Venezuela.
Even though the strikes are said by the US to have happened thousands of kilometers from where he fishes, his wife has been trying to convince him to leave Lake Maracaibo. Every day she begs him to leave his fishing job. She tells me to look for another job, but there's nowhere to go, he explains.
The fear of being hit by a US strike is the latest of a long list of risks he and his men face, including pirates, oil spills, and a decline in earnings in recent years. The Trump administration accuses Maduro of leading the Cartel of the Suns drug trafficking gang and is offering a $50m reward for information leading to his capture.
Amid this turmoil, many fishermen remain determined. José Luzardo, a spokesman for local fishermen, expressed defiance against US actions, stating that they are willing to defend their homeland at any cost. As such, the situation facing the fishing community in Venezuela remains precarious, caught between international military strategies and local economic survival.
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 last month, the US has conducted at least six strikes on suspected drug-carrying boats in the Caribbean, with the latest being carried out on Thursday. At least 27 people have been killed, but Thursday's strike appeared to be the first to have survivors aboard the boat.
The US has accused those killed of smuggling drugs but has so far not presented any evidence. Experts have suggested the strikes could be illegal under international law. Tensions between the US and Venezuela escalated further on Wednesday when US President Donald Trump said that he was considering strikes on Venezuelan soil. He also confirmed that he had authorized the CIA to carry out covert operations inside Venezuela.
Even though the strikes are said by the US to have happened thousands of kilometers from where he fishes, his wife has been trying to convince him to leave Lake Maracaibo. Every day she begs him to leave his fishing job. She tells me to look for another job, but there's nowhere to go, he explains.
The fear of being hit by a US strike is the latest of a long list of risks he and his men face, including pirates, oil spills, and a decline in earnings in recent years. The Trump administration accuses Maduro of leading the Cartel of the Suns drug trafficking gang and is offering a $50m reward for information leading to his capture.
Amid this turmoil, many fishermen remain determined. José Luzardo, a spokesman for local fishermen, expressed defiance against US actions, stating that they are willing to defend their homeland at any cost. As such, the situation facing the fishing community in Venezuela remains precarious, caught between international military strategies and local economic survival.
