The United States military announced on Friday that it killed two individuals in an attack on a vessel in the eastern Pacific, continuing a series of lethal strikes on boats in recent months that it claims target drug trafficking operations.
Details of the Strike
The US Southern Command posted on social media that General Francis L Donovan directed the Joint Task Force Southern Spear, the counter-narcotics unit operating in the region, to carry out the strike. The military released a video, labeled unclassified, showing a small boat being destroyed in an explosion.
Rising Death Toll
Since September last year, the US campaign targeting boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific has killed at least 178 people. However, detailed evidence behind military officials' claims that the vessels are involved in drug trafficking has not been provided.
Legal and Human Rights Concerns
Legal experts argue that the US military is violating domestic and international law with these attacks. Families of two men from Trinidad killed in a strike have filed a lawsuit against the government. Civil rights groups have vowed to challenge the legality of the attacks through all available pathways. UN officials have described the campaign as a flagrant violation of human rights.
Jamil Dakwar, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Human Rights Program, stated, "We are doing everything in our power to hold the Trump administration responsible for its egregious violations of both US and international law, and that includes asking the widely respected Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to investigate these heinous killings."
Administration's Justification
The Trump administration argues the strikes are legal, claiming adherence to the laws of conflict because the US is at war with drug cartels. President Donald Trump has said the campaign is necessary to prevent overdose deaths in the US and stop the influx of illicit drugs. "What we're doing is actually an act of kindness," Trump said last year regarding the strikes.
SouthCom has regularly posted on social media announcing its strikes, often accompanied by low-resolution videos showing vessels being destroyed.
