The United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has condemned the United States for conducting military airstrikes against boats linked to drug trafficking in the Caribbean and Pacific, labeling the actions “unacceptable” and “illegal.” The strikes, which began in early September in the Caribbean and later expanded to the eastern Pacific, have resulted in at least 61 deaths.
At a UN briefing in Geneva, spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani conveyed the commissioner’s concerns, asserting that the U.S. operations violate international human rights law. “The U.S. must halt such attacks and take all measures necessary to prevent the extrajudicial killing of people aboard these boats,” she stated. Shamdasani emphasized that lethal force should only be used as a last resort against individuals posing an imminent threat to life.
U.S. War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the latest strike in the eastern Pacific Ocean near Colombia, framing the campaign as part of broader efforts to dismantle transnational drug networks and “narco-terrorist” groups. President Donald J. Trump has publicly supported the strikes, calling them a “necessary measure” to curb the flow of illegal drugs into the United States. Reports indicate that several targeted vessels were connected to criminal organizations such as Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua and Colombia’s communist National Liberation Army.
Shamdasani criticized the U.S. approach, stating, “The fight against drug trafficking is not a war. It is a law-enforcement matter governed by strict limits on the use of lethal force.” Trump, however, has taken a more aggressive stance, designating cartels as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and declaring war on them. In recent remarks, he asserted, “We’re going to kill them, you know, they’re going to be, like, dead.”
