Screenshot from a video posted by the US Southern Command shows a strike on a small boat on November 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Photo: X/@Southcom.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—The US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) announced Sunday what it described as a strike on a small boat in the Pacific Ocean, leading to the deaths of three civilians. The US military command accused the individuals of being narco-terrorists but did not provide evidence.
The announcement followed a template used by the US regime to confess these illegal actions, which the United Nations has labeled as extrajudicial killings. It repeated euphemisms and the narrative of an alleged “war on drugs” to justify the operations.
So far, the US has not announced major internal operations to eliminate US-based cartels in charge of distributing drugs within the US, which represents the world’s largest market for drug consumption.
On Nov. 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling,… pic.twitter.com/iM1PhIsroj
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) November 16, 2025
The US has also not shown any initiative to dismantle the US-based banking network that launders money for this illegal multinational crime network. Similarly, it has not launched a comprehensive campaign to properly address US drug consumption and treat it as the healthcare crisis it is.
Since the controversial US military operation began on September 2, authorities have only released blurred footage of the strikes. They have not provided the names of those killed, the precise location of the incident, or a detailed description of the alleged drugs being carried on the small boats.
So far, the SOUTHCOM killing spree has taken the lives of 82 civilians, mostly poor fishermen, in 21 “kinetic strikes” against 22 small boats. Nationals of Venezuela, Colombia and Trinidad & Tobago have been killed, along with one Ecuadorian survivor. However, the precise nationality of all those executed is unknown, given the opacity with which the military operation has been carried out.
On Sunday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro made a proposal for a multilateral meeting to comprehensively address the situation. He said it should include authorities from the United States, China, Mexico and Colombia, and which he believes should also include Ecuador, Chile and Australia, with the goal of “analyzing a treaty towards a Pacific without illegalities.”
“Threatening the Caribbean, Mexico and Colombia, besides being despotic, serves no purpose,” Petro wrote on social media, while noting that he had already proposed the meeting to General Aquilino, former commander of the US Pacific Command.
Analysts consider Petro’s proposal very unlikely to succeed; however, it is part of the responsible approach of a head of state who still believes in common sense from imperial powers.
President Petro was accused by the US empire of being a narco-leader just after he criticized the killing of a Colombian in one of the US strikes. Later, the US canceled cooperation aid to Colombia, threatened to bomb Colombia and President Petro, and added him to the Clinton List of sanctioned individuals.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/JB
