UN Rights Chief Condemns US Military Strikes on Drug Vessels as Unlawful Killings

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk declared Friday that US military airstrikes on alleged drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean and Pacific violate international human rights law, calling for an immediate halt to operations that have killed over 60 people since early September.

“These attacks – and their mounting human cost – are unacceptable. The US must halt such attacks and take all measures necessary to prevent the extrajudicial killing of people aboard these boats, whatever the criminal conduct alleged against them,” Türk said.

The strikes represent a significant departure from historical US practice. Traditionally, the Coast Guard interdicted suspected drug vessels while a multi-agency strike force known as “Panama Express” handled investigation and prosecution of resulting drug cases. The Justice Department has since shut down that Reagan-era organized crime drug task force and transferred remaining cases to a newly created Homeland Security Task Force.

The US has argued these actions constitute necessary anti-drug and counter-terrorism operations governed by international humanitarian law. However, Türk countered that countering illicit drug trafficking “is – as has long been agreed among States – a law-enforcement matter, governed by the careful limits on lethal force set out in international human rights law.”

“Under international human rights law, the intentional use of lethal force is only permissible as a last resort against individuals who pose an imminent threat to life,” Türk stated, adding that based on sparse information provided by US authorities, “none of the individuals on the targeted boats appeared to pose an imminent threat to the lives of others.”

Since early September, the US military has carried out at least 14 strikes against alleged drug vessels in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. The Pentagon has provided few details about those targeted but has acknowledged some victims include people from Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador.

Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats led by Vermont Senator Peter Welch are demanding the Department of Justice hand over all legal opinions justifying the strikes. In remarks from the Senate floor, Welch questioned the legality of the military actions and called on Congress to assert its constitutional authority over decisions to go to war.

“Laws matter, and the Constitution matters. If the President does want to start a war, if he wants to put America’s troops in harm’s way, he needs to seek authorization from Congress,” Welch said. “It’s up to the Senate to do its job.”

The senators’ letter, signed by all Democratic members of the committee including Ranking Member Dick Durbin, states that “summarily killing criminal suspects is prohibited under domestic and international law in both peacetime and wartime.”

Amnesty International called the strikes “illegal” in a statement released Wednesday and urged Congress to stop further bombings. “In the last two months, the U.S. military’s Southern Command has gone on a murder spree by following the Trump administration’s illegal orders,” said Daphne Eviatar, Amnesty International USA’s Director for Human Rights and Security.

The organization noted that Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the US could have intercepted the first boat but chose to bomb it instead.

Welch also questioned the administration’s commitment to fighting drug trafficking, noting that funding has been cut for domestic treatment programs while billions are spent on military operations in Venezuela. “Why are we spending billions of dollars in this effort in Venezuela, while at the same time taking funding away for treatment programs here at home that actually have been proven effective to help the most vulnerable Americans that are actually struggling with addiction to fentanyl and other drugs?” Welch said.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has ordered the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the US Southern Command region to “reinforce operations against transnational criminal organizations.” The deployment adds to a Caribbean already crowded with US destroyers, a nuclear submarine, and fighter jets.

Türk called for prompt, independent, and transparent investigations into the attacks and urged the US Government to adhere to international law, including applicable counter-narcotics treaties. He called on authorities to maintain use of well-established law enforcement methods, including lawfully intercepting boats and detaining suspects under applicable rules of criminal law.

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