♪ this is "nightline." >> tonight, a secret war. the amazon rain forest under attack. fires and illegal logging destroying one of the earth's most vital resources. and now an indigenous tribe is fighting back. on a dangerous and deadly mission to protect their land. with rare access, we follow them to the front lines. >> he's got his hand on his pistol, other hand on a machete. we have no idea what we're getting into. >> in a fight that has global consequences. how the sacrifices of a few may be protecting the future of millions living on this planet. "nightline," "guardians of the

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means necessary. tonight we once again bring you inside their dangerous and deadly fight as they risk their lives in a mission that could change the world forever. here's abc's dan harris. >> reporter: we're on the eastern edge of the brazilian amazon, indigenous territory. we're visiting a tribe who say they are under assault by illegal loggers. about 20 miles ahead here, we're going to have our first meeting with a group called the guardians of the forest. as night falls, we meet the leader of what is essentially an indigenous paramilitary group. his name is lyercia guagujara. he's agreed to let us embed with his troops as they launch an extended patrol through the jungle to trap down and apprehend illegal loggers on their land.

this is a dangerous task. over the past two decades, more than 80 of them have been killed defending their land. it is a rare inside view of a story the world has been watching since the amazon began burning last year. >> thousands of fires raging across brazil -- >> the amazon rain forest is taking a beating. deforestation rates have nearly doubled. >> one report claims the equivalent of three soccer fields are being deforested every minute in the amazon. >> as the world reacts to the amazon's destruction, indigenous brazilians are on the front lines of the fight to save their land.

>> you guys have a lot of weapons, but these men may be heavily armed too. do you get nervous before you do this? >> reporter: scientists say the amazon may be at a crucial tipping point, where instead of mitigating climate change, it begins to exacerbate it. brazilian law established special protections for indigenous territories, giving the tribe a legal right to patrol their own land. we just pulled up on a village

where the guardians have been told that two outsiders were recently hired to guard an illegal logging operation. lyercio is wearing a body cam a camera. >> these two young men they found outside this building are delivering shifting stories, at first saying they had nothing to do with the logging operation here, then saying they were forced to work by the boss. you got a little rough with these young men over here. what was your thinking there?

>> reporter: one of the men admits he is lying. and hands over his phone to the guardians. on it, they find this. videos and pictures that provide clear evidence of illegal logging. 80% of the deforestation in the amazon is the result of the cattle industry. after loggers have cut down the most valuable trees, the land is burned and turned into battle pasture. and the group say the incursions onto their land have escalated since the election of far-right president jair bolsonaro, known as the trump of the tropics who has openly called for developing the amazon. >> reporter: the guardians say they're not just fighting to protect their own home. on their land lives another

small tribe called the awa. they've had no contact with the outside world other than this reported sighting captured last year by a member of the quajajara. last night they busted the lower-level folks involved with this illegal logging prag ingin. now they're going up to path where the illegal loggers will be at work, and they're fully expecting these men to be armed. among people leading the charge, paolo, their number two. they get close to what they believe are multiple logger camps, so out. paolo leads the larger group, while lyercio runs point in a smaller unit. lyercio sees something through the trees.

>> reporter: they're marching this prisoner deeper into the forest. they're making the prisoner call out to his colleagues.

>> reporter: through the woods, paolo's search party sees something.

>> reporter: all told, the guardians capture seven loggers, proof of the men's activities scattered across the campsites. >> reporter: even notes on how much they cut down, and profits made. this wood goes to local cattle ranchers who build fences around their area, and they're selling the stakes for those fences. it even shows right here how much money they're making. why did you agree to do this work?

>> reporter: these are low-level people you're dealing with here. how do you go after the bosses? >> reporter: as an added deterrent to stop the loggers from coming back, lyercio burns the timber they cut down. >> reporter: normally, the guardians' next move would simply be to expel the loggers from their land. but lyercio tells us they're going to do something they've never done before, bring the suspects to federal authorities seven hours away. a dangerous mission deep into enemy territory.

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in the wake of the devastating fires and the increasing deforestation in the amazon, one small indigenous tribe has taken it upon themselves to fight the world's battle. and we are with the guardians of the forest as they transport seven men captured for suspected illegal logging to federal police. first, though, they must pass through the town of arame, a

notorious base for illegal loggers just outside their indigenous territory. in 2018, a tribal leader critical of illegal logging was found dead here. so the guardians wait for the cover of darkness before heading out. >> reporter: the next morning, they arrive at federal police headquarters.

>> reporter: lyrecio's prediction seems to have been accurate. the next day the prisoners are released after being charged with illegally entering indigenous territory, a crime legal experts tell us is rarely, if ever, prosecuted. the guardians vow to go right back to work. meanwhile, we head back to new york city just as the united nations climate change summit is taking place. with protesters in the streets decrying brazil's environmental policies, president jair bolsonaro fires back.

>> reporter: not long after, the battle over one of the world's most precious ecological resources takes a tragic and violent turn when lyercio and his deputy, paolo, are ambushed during a hunting trip.

>> reporter: paolo is dead, leering lyercio alone to walk through miles through the forest, badly wounded, until he can find help.

>> reporter: despite his serious wounds, lyercio only briefly stays at the hospital out of fear of being hunted down in the

city. he's moved to a safehouse somewhere on indigenous land. >> reporter: law enforcement visits the guardians in a sign of solidarity and promised to bring those responsible to justice.

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♪ the full documentary "guardians of the amazon" is streaming right now on hulu. that's "nightline" for this evening. we'll see you next year in 2021. thanks for the company, america. good night, and happy new year.