GDF patrol comes under fire again along Cuyuni River

Mere days after a lance corporal attached to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) was shot and injured in a shootout in the vicinity of Black Water, close to the Venezuelan border, the GDF reported that one of its patrols encountered hostile fire twice on Tuesday while conducting border security operations in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni).

The GDF stated that both incidents occurred in the Cuyuni River at approximately 16:10h and 16:50h, respectively, at known locations. “On each occasion, the patrol, escorting civilian vessels, responded in accordance with operational procedures and safely manoeuvred out from the area without injury to anyone,” the law enforcement body stated in a release to the media.
However, the GDF stated that it continues to maintain a sustained operational presence along the western border and remains committed to safeguarding Guyana’s territorial integrity and the security of its border communities.
On Monday, GDF personnel escorting three civilian boats transporting personnel and cargo from Makapa to Eteringbang at about 11:30h in the vicinity of Black Water came under fire, thus resulting in Lance Corporal Troyland Douglas being injured.

Similar incidents have previously occurred along the same stretch of river. In February 2025, multiple soldiers were injured when another GDF patrol came under heavy gunfire from suspected armed groups during a supply mission between Eteringbang and Makapa.
Several ranks sustained gunshot wounds in that engagement, which was later confirmed by both Police and military sources.
In May 2025, the GDF reported that troops conducting riverine patrols along the Cuyuni River were targeted in multiple shooting incidents by armed men believed to be operating from the Venezuelan bank. The army confirmed that troops returned fire and that no injuries were reported in that specific exchange.