Venezuelan Fishermen Face New Perils Amidst US Military Operations

Fri Oct 17 2025 12:26:27 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

As US strikes target suspected drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean, Venezuelan fishermen like Wilder Fernández are living in fear of being caught in the crossfire, reshaping their livelihoods and safety concerns.

In Venezuela, fishermen are grappling with heightened fears due to US military strikes against alleged narcotics vessels in the Caribbean. Wilder Fernández, a seasoned fisherman from Maracaibo, expresses concerns over the increased danger, fearing he could be mistakenly targeted despite the US claims of acting against drug traffickers. The growing presence of US forces has not only induced anxiety among the fishing community but also threatened their economic stability as many fishermen consider quitting their profession or are approached by traffickers. Amid these challenges, a sense of defiance persists, embodying complex emotions around sovereignty and survival.

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 September 2, the US has carried out a number of strikes against what it labelled narco-boats, in which at least 27 people have been killed.

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 when US President Donald Trump said 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.

Mr. Fernández does not rule out that his boat could be hit by mistake.

Of course it worries me, you never know. I think about it every day, man, the father of three says.

Meanwhile, the attacks in the Caribbean have undermined the security of the fishermen in Venezuela, laments Jennifer Nava, spokeswoman for the Council of Fishermen in El Bajo, in Venezuela's Zulia state.

Ms. Nava tells BBC Mundo that people employed in the fishing industry fear being hit in the crossfire between US forces and alleged drug traffickers.

There is certainly a sense of nervousness among the fishermen of Lake Maracaibo.

Most of the crew of two small fishing boats owned by Usbaldo Albornoz refused to work when news of the US strikes broke.

Mr. Albornoz, who has been in the fishing business for 32 years, describes the situation as worrying.

The guys didn't want to go out to sea to fish, he told BBC Mundo on the beach in San Francisco de Zulia.

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.

But beyond the fear many are experiencing, there is also a feeling of defiance.

At the end of September, hundreds of fishermen on dozens of boats took to Lake Maracaibo in a show of support for the Maduro government and in protest at the US military deployment.

José Luzardo was one of them. He speaks out against the US, feeling it is targeting their sovereignty.

The attacks have forced Venezuelan fishermen into a precarious situation, where their daily battle for survival is coupled with a fear of foreign military intervention.