Caracas (CNN) At least two people have died and 17 were injured Friday in a standoff between a local indigenous community and the Venezuelan military over deliveries of humanitarian aid, according to local authorities.

"Instead of mediating, the military started shooting," Emilio Gonzalez, mayor of the Venezuelan town Gran Sabana, told CNN. The conflict took place near the Brazil-Venezuela border.

Gonzalez said one victim was a 34-year-old woman, who was part of an indigenous group trying to facilitate the passage of aid into Venezuela, one day after President Nicolas Maduro shuttered the country's border with Brazil.

National Assembly member Americo De Grazia said on his official Twitter feed that a second person, an indigenous man, had also died. CNN could not immediately confirm the deaths.

An ambulance carries people injured in clashes Friday in southern Venezuela near the Brazilian border.

Tensions are running high at Venezuela's borders amid opposition plans to usher aid into the country this weekend in defiance of Maduro's wishes.

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