Green Shield expands Amazon environmental crime crackdown

A UAE-led multinational operation has arrested 839 suspects and seized assets linked to environmental offences worth more than $280 million across the Amazon Basin, sharply expanding cross-border enforcement against illegal mining, logging and wildlife trafficking.

Operation Green Shield 2026 brought together law enforcement agencies from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, with organisational leadership and coordination provided by the UAE through the International Initiative of Law Enforcement for Climate. Authorities conducted 1,045 field operations during a 17-day campaign launched in July.

The confiscated materials included machinery, equipment and other assets connected to activities damaging forests, rivers and wildlife habitats. The scale of the action places it among the largest coordinated environmental law enforcement campaigns undertaken in the Amazon, where criminal enterprises often operate across remote territories and national borders.

Lieutenant General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, said the results showed how international partnerships could be converted into operational action against cross-border threats. The initiative is intended to strengthen intelligence exchanges, investigative coordination and simultaneous enforcement by participating countries.

The International Initiative of Law Enforcement for Climate, known as I2LEC, was launched by the UAE and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in 2023. It seeks to treat environmental offences as organised and financially motivated crimes rather than isolated breaches of conservation regulations.

Green Shield 2026 follows an earlier Amazon operation conducted between June 23 and July 6, 2025, involving more than 1,500 officers from Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. That campaign led to 94 arrests and the seizure of assets valued at more than $64 million after over 350 coordinated raids.

Officers involved in the 2025 operation confiscated more than 310 tonnes of raw minerals, 3,800 cubic metres of illegally harvested timber, 39,000 gallons of smuggled fuel and 530 pieces of heavy equipment. More than 2,100 live animals were rescued, while thousands of dead birds, reptiles and mammals believed to have been trafficked were recovered.

The addition of Bolivia and the substantially higher number of arrests and field actions in the 2026 campaign indicate a broader enforcement footprint. The five participating South American countries contain extensive areas of the Amazon and face overlapping criminal networks that move minerals, timber, wildlife, fuel and money through several jurisdictions.

Illegal gold mining remains one of the region’s most damaging activities. Mining operations can involve forest clearance, river dredging and the use of mercury, which contaminates waterways and enters food chains. Heavy machinery used at remote sites also requires fuel supply networks, creating links between mining, smuggling, corruption and money laundering.

Illegal logging follows similarly complex routes. Timber can be mixed with legally sourced products, supported by fraudulent permits and transported through legitimate commercial channels. Wildlife trafficking networks exploit roads, rivers, airports and online markets, making cooperation between police, customs authorities, prosecutors and financial investigators essential.

Environmental crime also carries direct consequences for communities living in affected territories. Indigenous populations can face displacement, polluted water, loss of traditional livelihoods and intimidation from armed groups. Criminal control of remote areas may weaken state institutions while generating revenue for organisations involved in narcotics, weapons trafficking and other offences.

The vast geography of the Amazon presents persistent enforcement difficulties. Investigators must operate across dense forests, international frontiers and waterways where conventional policing is costly and slow. Satellite imagery, geolocation systems, aerial surveillance and real-time intelligence platforms are increasingly being used to identify illegal sites and coordinate teams across borders.

The 2025 operation used a central command centre in Bogotá to support information sharing and synchronised action. Raids were carried out in ecologically sensitive areas of Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, including territories inhabited by Indigenous communities. Authorities disrupted illegal mining sites, wildlife trafficking groups and criminal operations linked to fuel theft and unauthorised timber extraction.