The United States has carried out two more military strikes against vessels suspected of carrying illicit drugs across international waters, killing five people. The latest attacks bring the total death toll to 37, with at least nine strikes now confirmed.
For the first time, these attacks have taken place in the Pacific Ocean, rather than the Caribbean Sea. This marks a new front in President Donald Trump's military campaign against Latin American cartels, which has raised concerns about the limits and legality of his actions.
The latest strikes targeted vessels near the Colombian coastline on Tuesday, with three people killed. The victims were identified as members of the National Liberation Army (ELN), a Colombian rebel group. This marks the seventh strike in the series, with the first occurring in September when 11 people were killed in an attack on a small boat traveling through international waters.
Critics have questioned the US government's strategy of targeting suspected drug traffickers at sea, arguing that most drug trafficking occurs through overland routes and official ports of entry. Human rights experts have also raised concerns about the legality of the strikes, citing the UN Charter and international law against extrajudicial killings outside of combat.
The Trump administration has defended its actions, labeling drug traffickers as "terrorists" equivalent to armed groups like al-Qaeda. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stated that the US will continue to take action against cartels waging war on the US border and people, with no refuge or forgiveness - only justice.
However, experts have argued that Trump has stretched the "terrorism" label beyond its original meaning to justify increasingly aggressive actions. The attacks have also heightened tensions between the US and South American leaders, particularly Colombia's President Gustavo Petro and Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, who have long been critical of Trump's policies on drug trafficking and Venezuela.
Petro has responded by threatening to sue Trump and his officials in a US court for slander, while Maduro has accused the US government of committing crimes and violating sovereignty. The situation remains tense, with the UN Security Council issuing a statement condemning the bombing campaign as an international crime that must be stopped.
For the first time, these attacks have taken place in the Pacific Ocean, rather than the Caribbean Sea. This marks a new front in President Donald Trump's military campaign against Latin American cartels, which has raised concerns about the limits and legality of his actions.
The latest strikes targeted vessels near the Colombian coastline on Tuesday, with three people killed. The victims were identified as members of the National Liberation Army (ELN), a Colombian rebel group. This marks the seventh strike in the series, with the first occurring in September when 11 people were killed in an attack on a small boat traveling through international waters.
Critics have questioned the US government's strategy of targeting suspected drug traffickers at sea, arguing that most drug trafficking occurs through overland routes and official ports of entry. Human rights experts have also raised concerns about the legality of the strikes, citing the UN Charter and international law against extrajudicial killings outside of combat.
The Trump administration has defended its actions, labeling drug traffickers as "terrorists" equivalent to armed groups like al-Qaeda. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stated that the US will continue to take action against cartels waging war on the US border and people, with no refuge or forgiveness - only justice.
However, experts have argued that Trump has stretched the "terrorism" label beyond its original meaning to justify increasingly aggressive actions. The attacks have also heightened tensions between the US and South American leaders, particularly Colombia's President Gustavo Petro and Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, who have long been critical of Trump's policies on drug trafficking and Venezuela.
Petro has responded by threatening to sue Trump and his officials in a US court for slander, while Maduro has accused the US government of committing crimes and violating sovereignty. The situation remains tense, with the UN Security Council issuing a statement condemning the bombing campaign as an international crime that must be stopped.
this is getting crazy... 37 people dead already? 
it's like we're living in a war zone out here... and what's with the US government's logic? targeting drug traffickers at sea? doesn't they know most of that stuff comes through ports of entry? 
it's just so much red tape around this whole thing... and the "terrorism" label is getting stretched so thin... al-Qaeda got 9/11, not boat rides across international waters! 
this is all just setting up for a massive diplomatic mess 
I'm kinda split on this one. On one hand, you gotta respect the efforts to tackle the cocaine problem in Latin America - it's been a major issue for years and needs serious attention. But on the other hand, targeting suspected drug traffickers at sea seems like overkill... 
! Like, Trump is just using this "terrorism" thing to justify whatever he wants, and now people are dying for it 
. Newsflash: drug trafficking isn't even a war-like situation, it's just some people trying to make a living or smuggle stuff across borders 
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. Colombia and Venezuela aren't just random countries; they've got their own governments, laws, and ways of life too 
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. I mean, if we're gonna call something "terrorism", it should be for actual terror attacks, not just because some people are smuggling drugs 
I'm low-key impressed by how quickly Trump's "war on drugs" has escalated into a full-blown global incident 
. Like, who needs diplomacy when you can just blow up some boats and claim they're terrorists? 
And now we've got Petro threatening to sue us in court because of this whole ordeal – that'll be fun to watch 
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? like, the whole thing feels so disjointed and hard to follow. need more clear headings, concise paragraphs, and some actual formatting 
I'm getting so tired of these strikes. Like, can't we just stop the traffickers at the ports already?