Apure clashes (2021–2022)

{{Main|Colombian conflict}}

On 23 June 2016, the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels signed a historic ceasefire deal, bringing them closer to ending more than five decades of conflict.{{cite news|author=Gregor Maaß|author2=Mario Pilz|date=23 July 2016|title=Returning to everyday life|publisher=D+C/Development+Cooperation|url=http://www.dandc.eu/en/article/study-identifies-measures-reintegrate-victims-colombias-civil-war-everyday-life|url-status=live|access-date=12 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160724162359/http://www.dandc.eu/en/article/study-identifies-measures-reintegrate-victims-colombias-civil-war-everyday-life|archive-date=24 July 2016}} Although the deal was rejected in the subsequent October plebiscite,{{Cite news|last=Idler|first=Annette|title=Colombia just voted no on its plebiscite for peace. Here's why and what it means.|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2016/10/03/colombia-just-voted-no-on-its-referendum-for-peace-heres-why-and-what-it-means/|access-date=23 June 2020|newspaper=The Washington Post|language=en}} the same month, President of Colombia Juan Manuel Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to bring the country's more than 50-year-long civil war to an end.{{cite web|title=The Nobel Peace Prize 2016 – Juan Manuel Santos|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2016/press.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161007090618/http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2016/press.html|archive-date=7 October 2016|access-date=7 October 2016|publisher=nobelprize.org}} A revised peace deal was signed the following month and submitted to Congress for approval.{{Cite news|date=24 November 2016|title=Colombia signs new peace deal with Farc|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-38096179|url-status=live|access-date=21 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228195756/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-38096179|archive-date=28 December 2016}} The House of Representatives unanimously approved the plan on 30 November, a day after the Senate also gave its backing.{{Cite news|date=30 November 2016|title=Colombia's congress approves historic peace deal with FARC rebels|newspaper=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/colombian-congress-approves-historic-peace-deal/2016/11/30/9b2fda92-b5a7-11e6-939c-91749443c5e5_story.html|url-status=live|access-date=1 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161201090410/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/colombian-congress-approves-historic-peace-deal/2016/11/30/9b2fda92-b5a7-11e6-939c-91749443c5e5_story.html|archive-date=1 December 2016}}

Dissidents formerly part of the FARC have refused to lay down their arms after the FARC-government peace treaty came into effect in 2016. The dissidents number some 1200 armed combatants{{cite web|date=20 March 2018|title=Disidencias de las Farc contarían con 1.200 hombres - ELESPECTADOR.COM|url=https://www.elespectador.com/noticias/judicial/disidencias-de-las-farc-contarian-con-1200-hombres-articulo-745490|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614100550/https://www.elespectador.com/noticias/judicial/disidencias-de-las-farc-contarian-con-1200-hombres-articulo-745490|archive-date=14 June 2018|access-date=6 June 2018}} with an unknown number of civilian militia supporting them. These fighters are believed to be heavily involved in the production and sale of cocaine.{{cite web|date=2 April 2018|title=La historia de "Gentil Duarte", el disidente de las Farc más buscado del país - ELESPECTADOR.COM|url=https://www.elespectador.com/noticias/judicial/la-historia-de-gentil-duarte-el-disidente-de-las-farc-mas-buscado-del-pais-articulo-747661|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920064955/https://www.elespectador.com/noticias/judicial/la-historia-de-gentil-duarte-el-disidente-de-las-farc-mas-buscado-del-pais-articulo-747661|archive-date=20 September 2018|access-date=11 August 2018}} Dissidents of FARC's 1st Front are located in the eastern plains of Colombia. Jhon 40 and their dissident 43rd Front moved into the Amazonas state of western Venezuela. Venezuela has served as the primary location for many FARC dissidents.{{Cite book|title=Venezuela: A Mafia State?|publisher=InSight Crime|year=2018|location=Medellin, Colombia|pages=3–84}} On 15 July 2018, the Colombian and Peruvian governments launched a joint military effort known as Operation Armageddon to combat FARC dissidents. Peru issued a 60-day state of emergency in the Putumayo Province, an area bordering both Colombia and Ecuador. On the first day alone, more than 50 individuals were arrested in the operation, while four cocaine labs were dismantled. The group has attempted to recruit locals in the Putumayo Province in Peru to take up their cause.{{cite news|date=16 July 2018|title=Peru arrests more than 50 in anti-drug bust at Colombian border|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-peru-colombia-drug-trafficking/peru-arrests-more-than-50-in-anti-drug-bust-at-colombian-border-idUSKBN1K704T|url-status=live|access-date=18 July 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180717223931/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-peru-colombia-drug-trafficking/peru-arrests-more-than-50-in-anti-drug-bust-at-colombian-border-idUSKBN1K704T|archive-date=17 July 2018}}

On 28 July 2019, during the XXV São Paulo Forum hosted in Caracas, Nicolás Maduro declared that the FARC-EP dissidents leaders Iván Márquez and Jesús Santrich were "welcome" in Venezuela and to the São Paulo Forum.{{Cite web|date=28 July 2019|title=Maduro dice que Iván Márquez y Jesús Santrich "son bienvenidos" a Venezuela|url=https://www.lavanguardia.com/politica/20190729/463744522312/maduro-dice-que-ivan-marquez-y-jesus-santrich-son-bienvenidos-a-venezuela.html|url-status=live|access-date=4 April 2021|website=La Vanguardia|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407023440/https://www.lavanguardia.com/politica/20190729/463744522312/maduro-dice-que-ivan-marquez-y-jesus-santrich-son-bienvenidos-a-venezuela.html |archive-date=7 April 2022 }}

Experts have argued that the motive for the clashes is the control of drug trafficking routes.{{Cite web|date=29 March 2021|title=Analistas: Enfrentamientos en Apure serían por control y drogas|url=https://elpitazo.net/politica/especialistas-sostienen-que-enfrentamientos-en-apure-serian-por-control-de-rutas-de-drogas/|url-status=live|access-date=29 March 2021|website=El Pitazo|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402031441/https://elpitazo.net/politica/especialistas-sostienen-que-enfrentamientos-en-apure-serian-por-control-de-rutas-de-drogas/ |archive-date=2 April 2021 }}

The Special Actions Forces (FAES), a task force of the Venezuelan National Police, has increased its presence in the area. Experts have affirmed that the FAES has gathered intelligence about the population and that they have not fought against guerrillas forces. Journalist Rocío San Miguel, specialized in military topics, has declared that the presence of the FAES in the area could be attributed to distrust of the executive branch in the Armed Forces.{{Cite web|date=5 April 2021|title=Enfrentamiento en frontera: ¿Por qué están las temidas Faes en Apure?|url=https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/venezuela/enfrentamiento-en-frontera-por-que-estan-las-temidas-faes-en-apure-578215|url-status=live|access-date=5 April 2021|website=El Tiempo|language=spanish|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210405080609/https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/venezuela/enfrentamiento-en-frontera-por-que-estan-las-temidas-faes-en-apure-578215 |archive-date=5 April 2021 }}

On 21 March 2021, an irregular armed group identified as FARC-EP dissidents started an attack to the Venezuelan army battalion in La Victoria town, located in the Colombian-Venezuelan border.

As soon as the clashes started a strong military presence was reported in the Apure state; the Guasdualito Airport was taken and militarized.{{cite tweet|number=1374711363562577928|user=_Provea|title=#Apure testimonio de una lideresa de 86 años denunciando los atropellos en el contexto de los operativos militares… |accessdate=25 March 2021|language=es|date=24 March 2021}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.novavenezuela.info/nota.asp?t=Movilizacion-militar-en-el-aeropuerto-de-Guasdualito&id=4708&id_tiponota=4|title=Movilización militar en el aeropuerto de Guasdualito|access-date=25 March 2021|website=NOVA Venezuela|language=es}} The same day, K-8 combat planes of the Venezuelan Air Force bombarded the lower part of La Victoria;{{Cite web|url=https://www.elimpulso.com/2021/03/21/reportan-bombardeo-aereo-contra-campamentos-de-las-farc-en-apure-21mar/|title=Reportan bombardeo aéreo contra campamentos de las FARC en Apure #21Mar|access-date=25 March 2021|last=Vidal|first=Brian|date=21 March 2021|website=El Impulso|language=es}} the bombardments were directed at guerilla camp sites. Javier Tarazona, director of the NGO Fundaredes, argued that the bombings were local and did not have the purpose of targeting the Colombian guerrillas that operated inside Venezuela.

The following day, on 22 March, the Venezuelan Defense Minister, Vladimir Padrino López, declared that two Venezuelan soldiers were killed and that 32 guerrillas had been arrested.{{Cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/es/minuto-a-minuto/20210322-mueren-dos-militares-venezolanos-durante-combates-con-grupos-irregulares-colombianos|title=Mueren dos militares venezolanos durante combates con grupos irregulares colombianos|access-date=25 March 2021|date=22 March 2021|website=France 24}} He also assured having "neutralized" the leader of the attacks, alias "Nando", considering the situation as controlled.{{Cite web|url=https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/2021/03/22/enfrentamiento-apure-venezuela-colombia-orix/|title=Dos muertos en enfrentamiento en Apure, cerca de la frontera de Colombia|access-date=25 March 2021|date=22 March 2021|website=CNN|language=es}} Shootouts and artillery mobilization continued in the following days.{{cite tweet|number=1374842370005565441|user=BramEbus|title=2/ There have been multiple confrontations between FANB and F10, but scale matters: far more troops and equipment a… |accessdate=25 March 2021|language=es|date=24 March 2021}}

On the night of 23 March, the local custom house was destroyed by guerrillas using explosives.{{Cite web|url=https://elpitazo.net/los-llanos/apure-guerrilla-destruye-sede-de-la-aduana-en-la-victoria/|title=Apure {{!}} Guerrilla destruye sede de la aduana en La Victoria|access-date=25 March 2021|date=24 March 2021|website=El Pitazo|language=es}} After the custom house attack, La Victoria was left without electric power and communications in the area were cut off, so most of the information was shared in social media. Human Rights Watch reported that over 3,000 Venezuelans civilians had been displaced to Arauquita, Colombia, where centers were established to help the refugees.{{Cite web|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/disidentes-de-las-farc-atacaron-con-explosivos-edificio-del-seniat-en-apure/|title=Disidentes de las FARC atacaron con explosivos edificio del Seniat en Apure|access-date=25 March 2021|last=Nacional|first=El|date=24 March 2021|website=EL NACIONAL|language=es-VE}} On 24 March, through the human rights organization Provea, inhabitants of La Victoria denounced abuses, human rights violations and theft by Venezuelan officers.{{Cite web|url=https://www.caracaschronicles.com/2021/03/24/combat-on-the-venezuela-colombia-border-what-we-know/|title=Combat on the Venezuela-Colombia Border: What We Know|access-date=24 March 2021|date=24 March 2021|website=Caracas Chronicles|language=en-US}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.eltiempo.com/politica/proceso-de-paz/frontera-las-razones-de-maduro-para-bombardear-disidencias-575445|title=Las razones de Maduro para bombardear unas disidencias de las Farc|access-date=25 March 2021|last=Tiempo|first=Casa Editorial El|date=23 March 2021|website=El Tiempo|language=spanish}}

Armed conflicts continued on 25 March, as more clashes between guerrillas and the Armed Forces were reported.{{Cite web|url=https://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/venezuela/venezuela-nuevos-enfrentamientos-entre-militares-y-disidencias-de-las-farc-576172|title=Nuevo enfrentamiento entre ejército venezolano y disidencias de Farc|access-date=26 March 2021|last=Tiempo|first=Casa Editorial El|date=25 March 2021|website=El Tiempo|language=spanish}} Venezuelan soldiers used self-propelled artillery in combat, including three armoured vehicles. Around the midday, a landmine exploded while the armoured vehicles moved through El Ripial sector. The Venezuelan government condemned the used of "terrorist methods" by the guerrilla and declared that it would request the help of the United Nations to disable the anti-personnel mines. NGOs reported that the activation of the mines had killed two Venezuelan soldiers. There were reports of arbitrary detentions during the shootouts and of Venenezuelan military officers asking for money for releases. The NGO Fundaredes denounced that on 26 March several attacks against the civilian population took place.{{Cite web|url=https://runrun.es/noticias/439640/fundaredes-alerta-de-ataque-contra-civiles-en-apure-durante-combates-en-frontera/|title=Fundaredes alerta de ataque contra civiles en Apure durante combates en frontera|access-date=27 March 2021|date=27 March 2021|website=Runrunes|language=es}}

Another guerilla attack and nine wounded soldiers were reported on 29 March.{{Cite web|date=29 March 2021|title=Fundaredes registró nuevo ataque guerrillero en Apure|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/fundaredes-registro-nuevo-ataque-guerrillero-en-apure/|url-status=live|access-date=29 March 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210329160529/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/fundaredes-registro-nuevo-ataque-guerrillero-en-apure/ |archive-date=29 March 2021 }}{{Cite web|date=29 March 2021|title=Varios militares heridos en los últimos choques con disidentes de las FARC en Apure|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/varios-militares-heridos-en-los-ultimos-choques-con-disidentes-de-las-farc-en-apure/|url-status=live|access-date=29 March 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210329152256/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/varios-militares-heridos-en-los-ultimos-choques-con-disidentes-de-las-farc-en-apure/ |archive-date=29 March 2021 }} Argentine news website Infobae also compared the conflict to the 1995 Cararabo massacre.{{Cite web|last=Barráez|first=Sebastiana|title=De la masacre de Cararabo a los ataques en la frontera: la larga historia de los militares venezolanos muertos a manos de la guerrilla colombiana|url=https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2021/04/02/de-la-masacre-de-cararabo-a-los-ataques-en-la-frontera-la-larga-historia-de-los-militares-venezolanos-muertos-a-manos-de-la-guerrilla-colombiana/|url-status=live|access-date=3 April 2021|website=Infobae|language=es-ES|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402112151/https://www.infobae.com/america/venezuela/2021/04/02/de-la-masacre-de-cararabo-a-los-ataques-en-la-frontera-la-larga-historia-de-los-militares-venezolanos-muertos-a-manos-de-la-guerrilla-colombiana/ |archive-date=2 April 2021 }}

Vladimir Padrino López announced the beginning of radio transmissions by the Armed Forces in the Tiuna FM Radial Circuit, in La Victoria, on 31 March, to combat misinformation.{{Cite web|date=31 March 2021|title="Para desmontar ataques mediáticos": FANB inició transmisiones de radio en Apure|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/para-desmontar-ataques-mediaticos-fanb-inicio-transmisiones-de-radio-en-apure/|url-status=live|access-date=1 April 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331143941/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/para-desmontar-ataques-mediaticos-fanb-inicio-transmisiones-de-radio-en-apure/ |archive-date=31 March 2021 }} The same day, two Venezuelan soldiers were killed after a mixed patrol commission that carried out patrol, reconnaissance and search operations in El Ripial was attacked with a rocket launcher.

On 1 April, two more Venezuelan soldiers were killed after an anti-personnel mine exploded.{{Cite web|date=1 April 2021|title=Venezuela: Mueren dos militares venezolanos en los combates en la frontera con Colombia {{!}} FARC {{!}} Apure {{!}} MUNDO|url=https://elcomercio.pe/mundo/venezuela/venezuela-mueren-dos-militares-venezolanos-en-los-combates-en-la-frontera-con-colombia-farc-apure-noticia/|url-status=live|access-date=1 April 2021|website=El Comercio|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401173848/https://elcomercio.pe/mundo/venezuela/venezuela-mueren-dos-militares-venezolanos-en-los-combates-en-la-frontera-con-colombia-farc-apure-noticia/ |archive-date=1 April 2021 }} Two human rights activists and two journalists that moved to the area to report on the conflict were arrested by security forces.{{Cite web|date=1 April 2021|title=Maduro detiene a dos periodistas y dos activistas en pleno conflicto armado en Apure|url=https://www.abc.es/internacional/abci-maduro-detiene-periodistas-y-activistas-pleno-conflicto-armado-apure-202104011852_noticia.html|url-status=live|access-date=1 April 2021|website=ABC|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401170244/https://www.abc.es/internacional/abci-maduro-detiene-periodistas-y-activistas-pleno-conflicto-armado-apure-202104011852_noticia.html |archive-date=1 April 2021 }} Juan Guaidó condemned the detention.{{Cite web|date=1 April 2021|title=Guaidó repudió la detención arbitraria de periodistas y activistas en Apure|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/guaido-repudio-detencion-arbitraria-de-periodistas-y-activistas-en-apure/|url-status=live|access-date=1 April 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401144937/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/guaido-repudio-detencion-arbitraria-de-periodistas-y-activistas-en-apure/ |archive-date=1 April 2021 }} They were released the following day.{{Cite web|date=2 April 2021|title=Liberados los dos periodistas detenidos por Maduro en el conflicto de Apure|url=https://www.abc.es/internacional/abci-maduro-detiene-periodistas-y-activistas-apure-202104020254_noticia.html|url-status=live|access-date=5 April 2021|website=ABC|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402005606/https://www.abc.es/internacional/abci-maduro-detiene-periodistas-y-activistas-apure-202104020254_noticia.html |archive-date=2 April 2021 }} The Armed Forces sent a surgical mobile hospital to Apure to attend to wounded soldiers.{{Cite web|title=Instalan hospital móvil en Apure para atender a militares heridos|url=https://www.laprensalara.com.ve/nota.php?ic=29395&y=2021&m=04&tit=instalan-hospital-movil-en-apure-para-atender-a-militares-heridos|access-date=3 April 2021|website=La Prensa de Lara}}

A house and a school in Los Cañitos were bombarded by the Venezuelan Armed Forces on 2 April.{{Cite web|date=3 April 2021|title=Fundaredes: bombardeadas una vivienda y una escuela en Los Cañitos, Apure (Videos)|url=https://www.el-carabobeno.com/fundaredes-bombardeadas-una-vivienda-y-una-escuela-en-los-canitos-apure-videos/|url-status=live|access-date=4 April 2021|website=El Carabobeño|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210403163841/https://www.el-carabobeno.com/fundaredes-bombardeadas-una-vivienda-y-una-escuela-en-los-canitos-apure-videos/ |archive-date=3 April 2021 }} Two soldiers died while handling a Russian SANI 120 MM mortar due to a grenade detonation accident on 3 April. On 4 April Nicolás Maduro declared that the armed group dresses up as guerrillas "to serve the drug trafficking routes", without identifying the group.{{Cite web|last=|date=5 April 2021|title=Maduro: Miembros del grupo armado en Apure se visten de guerrilleros|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/maduro-miembros-del-grupo-armado-en-apure-se-visten-de-guerrilleros-para-servir-a-las-rutas-del-narcotrafico/|url-status=live|access-date=5 April 2021|website=EFE|publisher=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210405015311/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/maduro-miembros-del-grupo-armado-en-apure-se-visten-de-guerrilleros-para-servir-a-las-rutas-del-narcotrafico/ |archive-date=5 April 2021 }}

On 29 April 2021, eight Venezuelan soldiers were killed in clashes with "irregular Colombian armed groups", according to the Ministry of Defence.

On 15 May 2021, the Venezuelan Army recognized that 8 of its soldiers had been captured in jungle fighting on May 9.{{Cite web|url=http://www.eluniversal.com/politica/97191/defensa-venezolana-exige-liberacion-de-militares-secuestrados-por-irregulares-colombianos-en-apure|title=Venezuela exige liberación de militares secuestrados por irregulares colombianos en Apure|date=15 May 2021|website=El Universal}} On Tuesday, 18 May, Jesús Santrich was killed in the Venezuelan territory.

On 5 December 2021, the leader of the Venezuelan armed organization Segunda Marketalia, Hernán Darío Velázquez, nicknamed "El Paisa", was killed in Venezuela. El Paisa was killed during a shootout near the Colombian border of Arauca and Vichada, there is no information about other dead or injured.

According to media reports, the attack could have been carried out by members of the Tenth Front of the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia), waging a territorial war with the Segunda Marketalia in Colombia and Venezuela, connected with drug trafficking. At the same time, sources of the publication ruled out any relation of the Colombian government to the shootout.{{Cite web|url=https://rusreality.com/2021/12/06/rebel-leader-killed-in-venezuela/|title = Rebel leader killed in Venezuela – Russian Reality}}

On January 1 Santiago Urrutia (pseudonym) pre ELN members came looking for his 26-year-old brother, Javier (pseudonym) at his house in rural Tame, accusing Javier of collaborating with the Joint Eastern Command. They threw Javier, a peasant, to the ground, tied his hands behind his back, and loaded him onto a motorbike

On the 19th a car bomb exploded near a building in an area with several human right groups which the Joint eastern command claimed responsibility saying it was targeting an ELN urban headquarters.{{Cite web |date=2022-03-28 |title=Colombia/Venezuela: Border Area Abuses by Armed Groups |url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/28/colombia/venezuela-border-area-abuses-armed-groups |access-date=2022-10-04 |website=Human Rights Watch |language=en}}

On January 20, ELN members broke into a house in rural Puerto Páez, Apure, and took away a 14-year-old girl and her 18-year-old brother at gunpoint, a relative said.

On January 28, a neighbor told their mother that her children had been killed during a fight with a FARC dissident group and where to find their bodies. The mother found them and said there were many other corpses in the area.

• The opposition National Assembly has denounced in the United Nations over thirty human rights violations during the clashes.
• Juan Guaidó declared in Twitter: "Maduro has turned our territory a haven of irregular armed groups that act with the accomplice watch of the Armed Forces", blaming the Venezuelan government for the displacement of Venezuelans.{{Cite web|url=https://rctv.com/noticias/guaido-enfrentamientos-apure-maduro/|title=Guaidó tras enfrentamientos en Apure: Maduro ha hecho de nuestro territorio un santuario para grupos armados|access-date=25 March 2021|last=Garcia|first=Eileen|date=24 March 2021|language=es|archive-date=24 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210324233356/https://rctv.com/noticias/guaido-enfrentamientos-apure-maduro/|url-status=dead}}
• Iván Simonovis, retired intelligence officer and Guaidó's security commissioner, condemned the violence.
• Venezuelan non-governmental organizations, such as Fundaredes and Provea, have denounced human right violations committed by Venezuelan security forces against Venezuelan civilians, warning that the death of five family relatives in El Ripial could constitute extrajudicial killings and drawing similarities with the Massacre of El Amparo in 1988, where Venezuelan military and police officers killed fourteen fishermen and presented them as guerrillas. Twenty-five NGOs defined the situation as a "massacre" and asked for a both national and international investigation.{{Cite web|last=Salas|first=Juan Bautista|date=29 March 2021|title=Unas 25 ONG califican de masacre hechos en el estado Apure y claman investigación nacional e internacional #29Mar|url=https://www.elimpulso.com/2021/03/29/unas-25-ong-califican-de-masacre-hechos-en-el-estado-apure-y-claman-investigacion-nacional-e-internacional-29mar/|access-date=29 March 2021|website=El Impulso|language=es}}
• The associations Control Ciudadano and Puentes Ciudadanos Colombia Venezuela, along with 300 Colombian and Venezuelan citizens and 60 NGOs from both countries asked the United Nations to appoint a special envoy for the border crisis.{{Cite web|date=1 April 2021|title=Piden designación de enviado especial de la ONU para conflicto en Apure|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/solicitaron-designacion-de-enviado-especial-de-la-onu-para-conflicto-en-apure/|url-status=live|access-date=1 April 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210401121718/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/solicitaron-designacion-de-enviado-especial-de-la-onu-para-conflicto-en-apure/ |archive-date=1 April 2021 }}
• Campesinos{{Clarify|date=May 2021}} published a video asking for peace and not to be treated as guerrillas, saying they were afraid or unable to return home.{{Cite web|date=3 April 2021|title=Campesinos piden paz ante conflicto en Apure y rechazan ser tratados como "subversivos" (video)|url=https://venezuelaunida.com/campesinos-piden-paz-ante-conflicto-en-apure-y-rechazan-ser-tratados-como-subversivos-video/|access-date=3 April 2021|website=Venezuela Unida|language=en-US}}

• United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) announced that the suspension of humanitarian activities due to the conflict.{{Cite web|date=2 April 2021|title=Suspendidas actividades humanitarias en Apure por conflicto armado|url=https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/ocha-suspendidas-actividades-humanitarias-en-apure-por-conflicto-armado/|url-status=live|access-date=3 April 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402160033/https://www.elnacional.com/venezuela/ocha-suspendidas-actividades-humanitarias-en-apure-por-conflicto-armado/ |archive-date=2 April 2021 }}
• Human Rights Watch (HRW) expressed its concern for Venezuelans that had been displaced to Colombia and condemned human rights violations committed in Apure by state security forces. HRW later reported that the human rights violations committed were more evidence for the International Criminal Court.{{Cite web|date=3 April 2021|title=Violaciones a DDHH en Apure son más evidencias para la CPI de acuerdo a HRW|url=https://runrun.es/noticias/440216/violaciones-a-ddhh-en-apure-son-mas-evidencias-para-la-cpi-de-acuerdo-a-hrw/|url-status=live|access-date=3 April 2021|website=Runrunes|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210403040549/https://runrun.es/noticias/440216/violaciones-a-ddhh-en-apure-son-mas-evidencias-para-la-cpi-de-acuerdo-a-hrw/ |archive-date=3 April 2021 }}
• Colombian President Iván Duque declared that the Apure conflict was between the Venezuelan Cartel of the Suns and the FARC dissidents, while saying that a protocol was started to receive refugees and prevent a COVID-19 outbreak in Arauquita.{{Cite web|date=2 April 2021|title="Conflicto en Apure es entre el Cartel de los Soles y disidencias FARC"|url=https://www.elnacional.com/mundo/duque-conflicto-en-apure-es-entre-el-cartel-de-los-soles-y-las-disidencias-de-las-farc/|url-status=live|access-date=3 April 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210402180030/https://www.elnacional.com/mundo/duque-conflicto-en-apure-es-entre-el-cartel-de-los-soles-y-las-disidencias-de-las-farc/ |archive-date=2 April 2021 }} The Office of the Inspector General of Colombia declared that the situation needs international assistance, insisting the humanitarian guarantees must be granted for the Venezuelans displaced because of the conflict.{{Cite web|date=31 March 2021|title=Procuraduría de Colombia: Situación en Arauca requiere de ayuda internacional|url=https://www.elnacional.com/mundo/procuraduria-de-colombia-situacion-en-arauca-requiere-de-ayuda-internacional/|url-status=live|access-date=1 April 2021|website=El Nacional|language=es-VE|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331124509/https://www.elnacional.com/mundo/procuraduria-de-colombia-situacion-en-arauca-requiere-de-ayuda-internacional/ |archive-date=31 March 2021 }}

• 2022 Arauca clashes
• 2018 Amazonas ambush
• Massacre of El Amparo
• "False positives" scandal

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