Reuters photographer Lunae Parracho recently went on a search and destroy mission in the Amazon with Brazil's Ka'apor Indians. Frustrated by the government's lack of action to keep illegal loggers out of the Alto Turiacu Indian territory, local warriors from several tribes have taken it upon themselves to find logging camps, destroy equipment, and drive out the unwelcome intruders. Parracho documented the scene as Ka'apor warriors captured a number of men in the forest, burned their trucks, destroyed their logs, then sent their captives down the road—freed, but without shoes or pants, their hands still bound. The Ka'apor Indians and four other tribes—the legal inhabitants and caretakers of the territory—have also set up monitoring camps in areas that are being illegally exploited.
Amazon Warriors Fight for Their Trees
-
![]()
Read moreA Ka'apor Indian warrior chases a logger who tried to escape after he was captured during a jungle expedition to find and expel loggers from the Alto Turiacu Indian territory, near the Centro do Guilherme municipality in the northeast of Brazil's Maranhao state in the Amazon basin, on August 7, 2014. Tired of what they say is a lack of sufficient government assistance in keeping loggers off their land, the Ka'apor Indians, who along with four other tribes are the legal inhabitants and caretakers of the territory, have sent their warriors out to expel all loggers they find and set up monitoring camps in the areas that are being illegally exploited. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreA truck carries logs along a dirt road leading out of the Alto Turiacu Indian territory, as seen from inside a vehicle belonging to the Ka'apor Indian tribe on August 2, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indian warriors gesture to members of their tribe as they depart on a jungle expedition to search for and expel loggers from the Alto Turiacu Indian territory, in the village of Waxiguy Renda near the Centro do Guilherme municipality in the Amazon basin, on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indians hand bows and arrows to tribal warriors traveling by truck through their village of Ximborenda, on the way to search for and expel loggers in the northeast of Maranhao state on August 6, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreA Ka'apor Indian watches as a group of warriors depart on a jungle expedition to search for and expel loggers from the Alto Turiacu Indian territory on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreArmed Ka'apor Indian warriors hike during their expedition to expel loggers on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreArmed Ka'apor Indian warriors hike during their expedition to expel loggers on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indian warriors stand over a logger they captured and tied up inside the Alto Turiacu Indian territory on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreWarriors tie up loggers they discovered in the northeast of Maranhao state on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indian warriors use sticks to beat captured loggers in the Alto Turiacu Indian territory on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indian warriors bind captured loggers on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreA warrior gets ready to set fire to a logging truck they discovered in the Alto Turiacu Indian territory on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreA Ka'apor Indian warrior stands near a burning logging truck during a jungle expedition to search for and expel loggers on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreWarriors tie up and remove the pants and shoes of captured loggers on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indian warriors release a logger (striped shirt) after capturing him during their expedition on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreA warrior uses a chainsaw to ruin one of the logs they discovered on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreA Ka'apor Indian warrior pours gasoline on a logging truck before setting fire to it on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreA logging truck burns after it was discovered and set on fire by Ka'apor Indian warriors on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
![]()
Read moreKa'apor Indian warriors tie up and remove the pants of a logger on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho -
-
![]()
Read moreLoggers, relieved of their pants and shoes, run off after being released by Ka'apor Indian warriors on August 7, 2014. #
Reuters/Lunae Parracho
We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.