Investigation ordered in helicopter attack

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PUERTO AYACUCHO, Venezuela, Aug. 30 (UPI) -- Venezuela's attorney general Thursday appointed a commission to investigate an alleged attack on Yanomami Indians.

In an official statement, the office said a complaint was filed Monday with the Amazonas state prosecutor's office, saying the Indians were attacked by helicopter. The alleged incident occurred in a remote area five hours by helicopter and a 15-day walk from Puerto Ayacucho, the main Venezuelan city in the Amazon.

The alleged attack was believed carried out by unauthorized Brazilian gold miners, CNN reported.

Survival International, a London group promoting the rights of tribal peoples, said the number of casualties had yet to be determined but that only three of the 80 known residents of the Amazon village had been located.

The Yanomami are considered the largest indigenous group in the Americas virtually untouched by the outside world. They live on the Venezuela-Brazil border.