In Brazil, a top expert on isolated Amazon tribes has been killed by an arrow in his chest. Rieli Franciscato, 56, was in a remote region in the northwest of the country tracking an indigenous tribe when he and his expedition were attacked.
A policeman accompanying the group said that Franciscato single-handedly pulled out the arrow that hit him above the heart. “He screamed, pulled the arrow from his chest, ran 50 yards and collapsed lifeless.”
Franciscato worked for Funai, the government agency for the protection of the indigenous people. According to photojournalist Uchadi, who was traveling with him, Rieli was on his way to the isolated tribe of Cautario River. That tribe is usually peaceful, Uchadi told AFP news agency. “But this time there were five armed men, it was like war.”
A local nonprofit, founded by Franciscato in the 1980s, says the attackers could not tell whether they were friends or foes.
No contact
Dozens of people live in the Amazon native tribes, according to Survival International, an organization dedicated to these often endangered populations. In recent months, several peoples have been identified with which there has never been contact before, Franciscato wanted to follow and map these peoples, the organization says.
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