Three indigenous men in Brazil, who dedicated their lives to protect their forests, have been attacked and two of them were killed, according to the Indigenist Missionary Council, a nonprofit organization that monitors violence against native peoples.

The men were known to be “forest guardians,” Guajajara guards, and protected the forests against the illegal deforestation.

Janildo Oliveira was shot multiple times and killed, and another man was shot as well on Saturday morning and survived. In another city, another indigenous man was run over by a car in a suspected targeted killing. 

The Guajajara guards live in the Arariboia Indigenous Territory in Maranhao and patrol the forest lands to keep invaders out. Five other men were killed in 2019-2020 in a four month-period.

A group of indigenous people from several tribes in the Sao Paulo area held a protest on Sunday. They were demonstrating against illegal logging, mining and ranching on their lands. 

The Missionary Council reported that 176 Indigenous people were killed in 2021. 

“We are here to say: enough with this violence, enough with genocide against our people and our territory,” a spokesperson for the Council said.