The Brazilian President has ordered the army to be deployed to the borderline state of Roraima shortly after clashes broke out between the locals and Venezuelans fleeing their country's economic and political problems.

In a statement on Tuesday, Brazil's President Michel Temer said that the military deployment he authorized on Tuesday is aimed at ensuring the security of both Brazilians and Venezuelan refugees, who have been pouring into one of the Brazil's poorest and least populated states en masse.

The government of Roraima, Brazil's northernmost state, has long urged federal authorities to stem the migrant flow overwhelming the small town of Pacaraima with a population of some 12,000.

An estimated 1,000 Venezuelan refugees were forced to sleep on the streets when a local storeowner was attacked in mid-August, in an incident blamed on foreigners. It sparked violent skirmishes that saw angry locals setting refugees' belongings on fire and throwing rocks at them. Several shots were fired during the altercation, and over 1,200 migrants were forced to cross the border back to Venezuela.

The Brazilian government responded to the unrest by sending 60 troops to assist local police, with Roraima state Governor Suely Campos asking the government to beef up security against a spike in crime, and temporarily shut down the border.

Justifying his move to send the troops that would be stationed in the northern and eastern areas of the state as well as on federal highways from August 29 to September 12, Temer said that the government took the urgent action in light of an "ever more intense flow" of arrivals from crisis-hit Venezuela, battling food shortages, skyrocketing inflation and unemployment.

The Brazilian authorities estimate that about 600-700 Venezuelans cross into Brazil from Venezuela daily. While the steady influx has put a strain on the Roraima authorities and has reportedly driven up the crime rate, only about 20-30 percent of Venezuelans remain in the country while others move on to Peru and Chile. Colombia has also been impacted by the Venezuelan exodus, with authorities estimating that some 3,000 Venezuelans cross into the country every day either to apply for temporary residence or move further to Ecuador or Peru.

With no end in sight to the Venezuelan economic turmoil, Peru and Ecuador have tightened checks at the border, demanding that migrants have valid passports with them. Before that, those who wanted to enter the country legally had only to produce ID.

Speaking about the broader implications of Venezuela's refugee problem, Temer argued that since it has transcended several borders it's no longer an internal issue, but "a threat to the harmony of the whole continent." He added that Brazil is "going to seek the support of the international community to adopt diplomatic measures to solve these problems." </s> SAO PAULO (AP) — In a story Aug. 19 about Venezuelan migrants in a Brazilian border town, The Associated Press reported erroneously that officers sent to the Brazil-Venezuela border are troops. They are members of a military-style police unit, but not part of the military.

A corrected version of the story is below:

The Brazilian government says it plans to members of a military-style police unit to the border town of Pacaraima after residents there attacked Venezuelan migrants

SAO PAULO (AP) — The Brazilian government plans to send members of a military-style police unit to the border town of Pacaraima after residents there attacked Venezuelan migrants.

Government-run news agency Agencia Brasil said Sunday that the Public Security Ministry plans to send at least 60 members of the elite, military-style National Force to Pacaraima. Calls to the ministry for details went unanswered.

Pacaraima is a major border crossing with Venezuela, where economic and political turmoil has driven tens of thousands to cross into Brazil over the past few years.

Authorities have said that Saturday’s violence erupted after a local storeowner was robbed, stabbed and beaten in an assault blamed on four migrants.

Groups of angry residents then roamed the town hurling rocks at the immigrants and setting fire to their belongings.

The army’s Humanitarian Logistics Task Force inn Roraima said Sunday that at least 1,200 immigrants fled Pacaraima to escape the violence and returned to Venezuela.

The Roraima state government estimates that more than 50,000 Venezuelans have crossed the border, occupying already existing shelters or sleeping in tents, plazas and streets. The influx was nearly equal to 10 percent of the state’s population of 520,000 inhabitants.

On Saturday, Claudio Lamachia, president of the Brazilian Bar Association, said that the violence in Pacaraima “exposed the humanitarian drama afflicting our neighbors … who are trying to improve their lives and survive.”

“The state of Roraima does not have the conditions to shelter all the immigrants,” he said.

The crisis has prompted state authorities in recent months to try to limit services to Venezuelans and temporarily shut the border. The federal government and high courts have curtailed attempts to do those things.

Copyright © 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed. </s> The attacks by Brazilians on camps of Venezuelan migrants in the border city of Pararaima have spurred 1,200 Venezuelans to abandon the South American giant and have raised tensions in a region that is asking for aid from the government.

Pacaraima is experiencing a tense calm after the protests on Saturday that shifted to acts of vandalism and violence against Venezuelan migrants fleeing their country's economic, political and social crisis. </s> Brazil's president mobilizes military after residents in the border town of Pacaraima clashed violently with Venezuelan migrants, driving them out of makeshift camps

SAO PAULO, Brazil – Brazil's President Michel Temer called an emergency meeting of key ministers Sunday after ordering troops to the border with Venezuela as regional tensions build over the exodus from its crisis-hit neighbor.

The move comes after residents in the border town of Pacaraima clashed violently with Venezuelan migrants, driving them out of makeshift camps.

Temer was meeting at his presidential palace in Brasilia with key ministers, including those of defense, public security and foreign affairs, but no further details were being disclosed.

The situation in Pacaraima, on the opposite side of the border to the Venezuelan town of Santa Elena de Uairen, was calm early Sunday, August 19, partly because locals managed to force out Venezuelans living on the streets.

"More than 1,200 Venezuelan migrants returned to Venezuela," after Saturday's violence, a spokesman for a Brazilian migration task force told AFP.

"The city looks deserted today, it's very quiet because police reinforcements have arrived and the markets are reopening," said a local in the town of around 12,000, who did not wish to be identified.

The public security ministry announced it was sending a contingent of 60 troops to join teams in the area on Monday.

Tens of thousands of Venezuelans have crossed the border into Brazil over the past 3 years as they seek to escape the economic, political and social crisis gripping their country.

The latest tensions began early Saturday, August 18, hours after a local merchant was robbed and severely beaten in an incident blamed on Venezuelan suspects, in Pacaraima, where an estimated 1,000 immigrants had been living on the street.

Dozens of locals then attacked the immigrants' two makeshift camps and burned their belongings, forcing the Venezuelans back across the border. Shots were fired, stores were shuttered and debris littered the streets.

"It was terrible, they burned the tents and everything that was inside," said Carol Marcano, a Venezuelan who works in Boa Vista and was on the border returning from Venezuela. "There were shots, they burned rubber tires."

Roraima state Governor Suely Campos made a plea to temporarily close the border and asked Brasilia to send security reinforcements to "face the increase in crime" she links to Venezuelans in the region, particularly in the capital Boa Vista.

Meanwhile, Caracas called on Brazil Saturday to provide "corresponding guarantees to Venezuelan nationals and take measures to safeguard and secure their families and belongings."

Tensions are rising in Latin America over migration triggered by the crises in Venezuela and in Nicaragua, where President Daniel Ortega has led a brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters.

Peru and Ecuador are halting immigrants at the border by requiring them to present passports – which many lack – instead of identity cards.

Last week alone, 20,000 Venezuelans entered Peru, authorities say. On Sunday, 18 undocumented Venezuelans were detained in the capital Lima, according to police.

Peru's passport measures go into effect August 25 – and the government has also narrowed the window for Venezuelans to apply for a temporary work permit, which it has granted for the past two years.

Previously, applications were open to Venezuelans who entered Peru by December 31, and the deadline was June 30, 2019. But now, only Venezuelans who enter Peru by October 31 can apply – and they have until December 31 to do so.

Colombia has said it fears that Ecuador's border controls, which went into effect Saturday, will leave thousands of Venezuelans stranded in Colombia, from where an estimated 3,000 cross every day.

The United Nations estimates that 2.3 million Venezuelans have fled the crisis looking for work and to escape poverty, and Colombia has given temporary residence to more than 800,000.

Brazilian federal police estimate about 500 Venezuelans enter Brazil every day. In the first semester of this year, around 56,740 requested refuge or temporary residence.

In San Jose, Costa Rica, hundreds of people took part in sometimes violent protests Saturday using Nazi symbols to repudiate Nicaraguan migrants. – Rappler.com </s> Brazil will send troops to its border with Venezuela on Monday after residents of the Brazilian border town of Pacaraima drove out Venezuelan immigrants from their improvised camps, amid growing regional tensions.

Tens of thousands of Venezuelans have crossed the border into Brazil over the past three years as they seek to escape the economic, political and social crisis gripping their country.

The latest show of tensions began early Saturday, hours after a local merchant was robbed and severely beaten in an incident blamed on Venezuelan suspects, in Pacaraima, where an estimated 1,000 immigrants are living on the streets.

Dozens of locals then attacked the two main immigrant makeshift camps and burned their belongings, leading Venezuelans to cross the border back into their home country.

Shots were fired, stores were shuttered and debris littered the streets. </s> SAO PAULO — Brazilian authorities say residents of the border town of Pacaraima attacked Venezuelan immigrants after a local storeowner was robbed, stabbed and beaten in an attack blamed on four immigrants.

Pacaraima, in the northern jungle state of Roraima, is a major border crossing between Brazil and Venezuela.

After a rally held Saturday to protest the attack against the storeowner, groups of residents roamed the town hurling rocks at the immigrants and setting fire to their belongings.

Police said the storeowner, who was beaten and robbed on Friday night, has been hospitalized and is in stable condition.

Fleeing the economic and political turmoil in their country, tens of thousands of Venezuelans have crossed the border into Brazil over the past few years. </s> Brazil’s President Michel Temer announced an emergency meeting of government Sunday after deploying troops to the border town of Pacaraima where Venezuelan migrants clashed with residents.

Temer met with key officials at his presidential palace, including those of defense, public security, and foreign affairs, but limited details were disclosed, said the AFP.

The situation in Pacaraima was critical on Saturday, migrant camps were overwhelmed by angry residents following reports that a local restaurant owner had been attacked by a gang of Venezuelans.

There has been growing hostility towards the numbers of Venezuelan migrants entering the Roraima state, Brazil’s northernmost region, in recent months.

Groups of men carrying blunt objects set fire to the camps and other items belonging to the Venezuelans, and more than one thousand migrants fled town back across the border.

“More than 1,200 Venezuelan migrants returned to Venezuela,” after Saturday’s violence, a spokesman for a Brazilian migration task force told AFP.

“The city looks deserted today, it’s very quiet because police reinforcements have arrived and the markets are reopening,” said a local in the town of around 12,000, who did not want to be identified.

Brazil’s public security ministry said it deployed 60 government soldiers to support the police in the area. They are due to arrive on Monday.

Shocking footage of the migrant crisis in Pacaraima was caught on video:

Video of the migrants being expelled from the town.

Another view of the chaos.

“It was terrible, they burned the tents and everything that was inside,” said Carol Marcano, a Venezuelan who works in Boa Vista and was on the border returning from Venezuela. “There were shots, they burned rubber tires.”

Roraima state Governor Suely Campos pleaded with Brasilia over the weekend to send security reinforcements to “face the increase in crime” she associates with Venezuelans in the region, particularly in the capital Boa Vista.

Meanwhile, Caracas, the Capital of Venezuela, called on Brazil Saturday to provide “corresponding guarantees to Venezuelan nationals and take measures to safeguard and secure their families and belongings.”

The uptick in violence came amid surging tensions in Latin America over migration triggered by the economic collapse in Venezuela.

According to the latest figures from the United Nations, more than 2.3 million Venezuelans have fled their country – mostly for Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil and Peru.

UN officials have also reported that 1.3 million of those migrants are now suffering from malnourishment, with food shortages running wild in parts of Latin America.

With another emerging markets-style crisis developing, the weakest currencies in Latin America (Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela, etc..) have been some of the ones with the most external hard currency borrowing, political turmoil, and/or the highest current account deficits, second to Turkey.

The role of the US in this crisis should also not be underestimated, as the steady increase in dollar interest rates and quantitative tightening by the Federal Reserve have led to a “currency tantrum” in the emerging markets. </s> Brazil Sends Military To Border To Cope With Flood Of Fleeing Venezuelans

Brazilian President Michel Temer signed a decree Tuesday to send troops to the country's northern state of Roraima, where Venezuelans fleeing food shortages have streamed across the border.

The armed forces will have police powers on the borders and highways in Roraima, the Brazilian government said.

Temer said the armed forces are being sent to "guarantee law and order" as Venezuela's migrant crisis was "threatening the harmony of the whole continent." He said the move was for the safety of both Brazilian citizens and Venezuelan migrants.

The decree is in effect until Sept. 12.

Temer said on Twitter that Brazil was working to minimize "the impacts of the humanitarian disaster caused by the government of Venezuela." He said Tuesday that Venezuelans have been subjected to "terrible living conditions."

Earlier this month, Brazilian residents at Roraima's border town of Pacaraima attacked migrant camps of Venezuelans, according to The New York Times.

In Venezuela, inflation rates recently topped 60,000 percent amid widespread reports of food and medicine shortages.

More than 1.6 million Venezuelans have left the country since 2015, the United Nations said, with 90 percent of them moving to other South American countries — especially Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Ecuador. A total of between 2,700 to 4,000 migrants arrive in those four countries each day, the U.N. says.

In Brazil alone, more than 800 Venezuelans have arrived each day as of April, the U.N. said, with a total of more than 52,000 since the start of 2017.

Brazil's announcement comes after a meeting this week of officials from Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and Brazil in the Colombian capital Bogota over the handling of what a U.N. refugee official has characterized as "one of Latin America's largest mass-population movements in history."

Colombia is now home to about 1 million Venezuelans while more than 400,000 are living in Peru, Reuters reported.

Colombia and Peru announced that they would begin sharing information on Venezuelan migrants in an effort to track movements and distribute aid, according to the wire service.

Ecuador has declared a state of emergency in some of its northern provinces in response to the influx, while Reuters reports that Peru declared a 60-day health emergency Tuesday in two of its northern border provinces.

Peru reported a decrease in the number of Venezuelan migrants entering the country after it imposed new requirements that went into effect Saturday — Venezuelan citizens must carry a passport to enter. Peru and Ecuador both made the change this month, requiring passports instead of national ID cards. </s> Brazil President Michel Temer signed a decree Tuesday to send the army to "guarantee law and order" on the border with crisis-hit Venezuela after recent violent clashes.

Earlier this month, more than a thousand homeless Venezuelan immigrants who had flooded over the border into Brazil's northwestern Roraima state were driven back by an angry mob that rampaged through their makeshift tent following rumours a local shopkeeper had been brutally beaten by migrants.

Temer said his measure was aimed at providing "security for Brazilian citizens but also Venezuelan immigrants fleeing their country."

He also branded Venezuela's crisis as "tragic," saying it "threatens the harmony of practically the entire continent."

Temer called on "the international community to adopt diplomatic measures" to halt the Venezuelan exodus, as economic and political crises under President Nicolas Maduro's regime drive hundreds of thousands to leave in hope of finding a better life elsewhere.

The United Nations says some 2.3 million Venezuelans are living outside their homeland, with 1.6 million of those having left since 2015.

Oil-rich but over-reliant, Venezuela is in a fourth year of recession brought on by a crash in oil prices in 2014. Some 96 percent of the country's revenue is generated through crude.

Temer didn't reveal how many soldiers would be deployed to Roraima, but Defense Minister Joaquim Silva e Luna said "troops are already in place" on the border.

Security Minister Sergio Etchegoyen warned that Brazil "needs to discipline" the influx of migrants.
Brazilians attack Venezuelan migrants at a border camp, the Brazilian military is deployed to stem the conflict.