The U.S. military said on 8 May that it struck a vessel in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing two people and leaving one survivor, in the latest in a series of controversial maritime operations targeting suspected drug trafficking routes.
United States Southern Command said the boat was operated by “designated terrorist organisations” and was travelling along known narcotics trafficking routes, though it did not identify the groups or provide evidence supporting the claim.
Southern Command said the United States Coast Guard had been notified to assist with search and rescue efforts.
According to the The New York Times, citing a U.S. official, the Mexican navy was leading efforts to locate and recover the survivor. Few survivors have emerged from similar U.S. strikes in recent months.
Washington says the operations are aimed at disrupting narcotics trafficking and targeting what President Donald Trump’s administration describes as “narco-terrorist” networks.
However, human rights organisations and legal experts have raised concerns about the legality of the attacks.
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have described the strikes as “unlawful extrajudicial killings”.
Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union said the administration’s claims against those targeted were “unsubstantiated” and accused officials of using fear-driven rhetoric.
U.S. forces have carried out multiple strikes on vessels in the eastern Pacific in recent weeks. According to available figures, the operations have killed more than 190 people since September.
The Trump administration maintains the vessels were involved in drug smuggling, though critics argue the military has provided little public evidence to justify the lethal use of force.
Four Turkish military personnel have been killed after an S-70 helicopter crashed in the eastern province of Malatya on Thursday, Türkiye'...
President Vladimir Putin agreed on Thursday to let European representatives jo...
Azerbaijan and the UK have pledged to strengthen defence, trade and education cooperation after signing a joint declaration elevating relations to ...
European leaders gathered in Dublin on Thursday, 12 November, for the ninth European Political Community (EPC) summit, with security, defence and energy high on the agenda. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held talks focused on peace, trade and regional cooperation.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres delivered a stark warning at this year's COP31 summit, saying the climate crisis iss advancing faster than governments' efforts to contain it.
Iran will not let a single particle of its enriched nuclear material leave the country, and any new U.S. attack would be met with strikes on distant American bases, Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei has said.
Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang is stepping down amid reports linking him to a woman suspected by U.S. authorities of spying for China, throwing the future of the $4 trillion chipmaker into uncertainty.
Here's your AnewZ Daily Brief for 11 November. Today, we cover Russia-Ukraine peace talks, political tensions in Washington, strikes in Spain, espionage allegations involving Nvidia's CEO, and climate negotiations at COP31 in Türkiye.
President Vladimir Putin agreed on Thursday to let European representatives join the next round of Ukraine peace talks while the United States continues to work towards what could become the largest prisoner exchange of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Azerbaijan and the UK have pledged to strengthen defence, trade and education cooperation after signing a joint declaration elevating relations to a strategic level in Dublin, Ireland on Thursday (12 November).
More than 333,000 people have been forced from their homes in Yemen since the beginning of August as fighting has escalated, including more than 24,000 in the past week alone, the United Nations said on Thursday.
A court in Russia’s Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad has sentenced human rights lawyer Maria Bontsler to 12 years in prison on treason charges, after prosecutors accused her of passing sensitive information to Ukraine.
U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to double tariffs on Mexico unless it stops more than a thousand migrants who are walking north towards the United States, warning that they will be denied entry.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment