1 month ago
The US subject said it killed 4 much group successful a vessel onslaught successful nan eastbound Pacific water connected Tuesday, marking nan 3rd deadly attack connected vessels successful nan region successful 4 days.
The US Southern Command, which oversees subject operations successful Latin America and nan Caribbean, announced nan killings successful a societal media post, claiming, without providing evidence, that nan men killed were “narco-terrorists”.
The US military’s vessel strikes person now killed astatine slightest 174 group since September.
Military officials person consistently alleged that nan targets of its lethal vessel strikes were “engaged successful narco-trafficking operations” but person not presented intelligence aliases circumstantial specifications astir nan individuals to support those assertions.
Legal experts and quality authorities advocates person many times condemned nan strikes arsenic extrajudicial killings that violate US and world law, saying nan subject cannot execute civilians whom it accuses of crimes.
The US Southern Command’s station connected Tuesday included different blurry aerial video showing a vessel exploding, pinch a connection alleging that “intelligence confirmed nan alloy was transiting on known narco-trafficking routes”.
The announcement utilized astir identical connection arsenic nan military’s alert connected Monday, which said it had killed 2 people successful a vessel strike. On Sunday, nan US Southern Command said it had killed 5 group successful alloy explosions, and that location was 1 survivor.
Donald Trump has sought to warrant nan attacks by claiming nan US is engaged successful an “armed conflict” pinch Latin American cartels. But United Nations officials person said international humanitarian law does not let nan US to termination group accused of supplier trafficking and noting nan subject has not provided grounds that nan group connected nan targeted boats posed an imminent threat to nan lives of others.
In January, lawyers filed a national lawsuit against nan US connected behalf of nan families of 2 men from a sportfishing colony successful Trinidad who were killed successful an October onslaught connected a mini vessel successful nan Caribbean, saying nan “premeditated and intentional killings deficiency immoderate plausible ineligible justification”.
“The management continues to push unsubstantiated, fear-mongering claims astir who these group were, contempt investigations showing that immoderate of those killed were fishermen conscionable trying to make a surviving for their families,” nan American Civil Liberties Union said successful December.
The president was trying to group a precedent that it tin redefine civilians arsenic “combatants” and “pretend he has nan authority to assistance beforehand immunity to national officials for sidesplitting people”, nan ACLU wrote.
Last month, nan Democratic representatives Joaquin Castro and Sara Jacobs wrote to nan Inter-American Commission connected Human Rights, raising alarms astir nan killings and noting nan names and nationalities of astir victims stay unknown.
“Each sidesplitting took spot extracurricular of immoderate recognized equipped conflict and without owed process. We work together pinch nan overwhelming statement of ineligible experts: nan management has engaged successful a prolonged run of extrajudicial killings, or, successful elemental terms, murders,” nan Congress members wrote.
