A Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion takes off from the Navy's USS Iwo Jima in the Caribbean on Sept. 23, 2025. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Emily Hazelbaker





The United States is releasing and repatriating the two survivors of a suspected drug smuggling submersible vessel that was destroyed Thursday in the Caribbean, President Donald Trump announced on Saturday. The two people are currently being held on a Navy vessel in the Caribbean after the military recovered them from the site of the airstrike. 



The two will be released back to their home countries, Ecuador and Colombia, respectively, rather than remain in American custody or prosecuted by the U.S. government. The survivors are being held on one of the several Navy ships currently operating in the Caribbean, following a buildup of forces since August. 



The strike on Thursday was the sixth one since the start of September against small boats in the Caribbean and the first time that any survivors were reported. At least 29 people have died, according to the numbers released by the White House. 



“The two surviving terrorists are being returned to their Countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia, for detention and prosecution,” Trump wrote in a post on social media. Trump and his administration have repeatedly accused the victims of the strikes of being “narco-terrorists” although so far no evidence has been presented showing the vessels were moving drugs. 



Saturday afternoon, Colombian President Gustavo Petro posted on X saying that the Colombian national had returned to the country. Petro expressed relief that the person was alive and said they will be prosecuted according to the law. Two hours later he released additional statements, saying that the boat destroyed in the Sept. 16 airstrike (the third one announced by the United States) was Colombian, showed signs of damage and had an engine out of the water before it was destroyed and was inside Colombian waters. He said that the victim was identified as a fisherman, Alejandro Carranza, and accused the United States of violating Colombian sovereignty.





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The submersible vessel was hit on Oct. 16, with the reports of survivors coming out the next day. The New York Times reports that the two were moved to the USS Iwo Jima, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship in the region with its amphibious ready group.



The decision to release the two survivors comes after they have been held in U.S. military custody for more than a day. The administration had previously told Congress it considers the United States in an armed conflict with drug cartels, which it earlier designated as foreign terrorist organizations. The Trump administration has also referred to those targeted and killed as “unlawful combatants” and if it is not clear if any people taken into custody would be kept in indefinite detention  as some have been in the Global War on Terror or tried in civilian court. 



Brian Finucane, a former State Department lawyer focused on laws of war and counterterrorism, said that repatriating them was “likely the least worst option from the administration’s perspective.”



“There is no armed conflict, so these survivors can’t be held as law of war detainees,” Finucane said. “If the U.S. government has a sufficient legal basis to prosecute them for crimes in Article III courts, it can do so.”



It is not clear how they are being moved, if it will be in a ship-to-ship transfer as the American vessels are not near a home port or if the U.S. will fly them to their home countries or a third-party country. The New York Times reported that the State Department had legal custody of the survivors.



The United States has accused the ships destroyed over the last two months of being linked to drug-trafficking cartels out of Venezuela, and tied to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Colombia’s government had previously said that its nationals were on a boat that was destroyed, and police from Trinidad and Tobago are investigating if two of that country’s citizens were on a ship destroyed on Oct. 14.



Update: 10/18/2025; This article has been updated with comments from Colombian President Gustavo Petro.  


 








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A Marine Corps CH-53E Super Stallion takes off from the Navy's USS Iwo Jima in the Caribbean on Sept. 23, 2025. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Emily Hazelbaker





The United States is releasing and repatriating the two survivors of a suspected drug smuggling submersible vessel that was destroyed Thursday in the Caribbean, President Donald Trump announced on Saturday. The two people are currently being held on a Navy vessel in the Caribbean after the military recovered them from the site of the airstrike. 



The two will be released back to their home countries, Ecuador and Colombia, respectively, rather than remain in American custody or prosecuted by the U.S. government. The survivors are being held on one of the several Navy ships currently operating in the Caribbean, following a buildup of forces since August. 



The strike on Thursday was the sixth one since the start of September against small boats in the Caribbean and the first time that any survivors were reported. At least 29 people have died, according to the numbers released by the White House. 



“The two surviving terrorists are being returned to their Countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia, for detention and prosecution,” Trump wrote in a post on social media. Trump and his administration have repeatedly accused the victims of the strikes of being “narco-terrorists” although so far no evidence has been presented showing the vessels were moving drugs. 



Saturday afternoon, Colombian President Gustavo Petro posted on X saying that the Colombian national had returned to the country. Petro expressed relief that the person was alive and said they will be prosecuted according to the law. Two hours later he released additional statements, saying that the boat destroyed in the Sept. 16 airstrike (the third one announced by the United States) was Colombian, showed signs of damage and had an engine out of the water before it was destroyed and was inside Colombian waters. He said that the victim was identified as a fisherman, Alejandro Carranza, and accused the United States of violating Colombian sovereignty.





Top Stories This Week















The submersible vessel was hit on Oct. 16, with the reports of survivors coming out the next day. The New York Times reports that the two were moved to the USS Iwo Jima, a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship in the region with its amphibious ready group.



The decision to release the two survivors comes after they have been held in U.S. military custody for more than a day. The administration had previously told Congress it considers the United States in an armed conflict with drug cartels, which it earlier designated as foreign terrorist organizations. The Trump administration has also referred to those targeted and killed as “unlawful combatants” and if it is not clear if any people taken into custody would be kept in indefinite detention  as some have been in the Global War on Terror or tried in civilian court. 



Brian Finucane, a former State Department lawyer focused on laws of war and counterterrorism, said that repatriating them was “likely the least worst option from the administration’s perspective.”



“There is no armed conflict, so these survivors can’t be held as law of war detainees,” Finucane said. “If the U.S. government has a sufficient legal basis to prosecute them for crimes in Article III courts, it can do so.”



It is not clear how they are being moved, if it will be in a ship-to-ship transfer as the American vessels are not near a home port or if the U.S. will fly them to their home countries or a third-party country. The New York Times reported that the State Department had legal custody of the survivors.



The United States has accused the ships destroyed over the last two months of being linked to drug-trafficking cartels out of Venezuela, and tied to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Colombia’s government had previously said that its nationals were on a boat that was destroyed, and police from Trinidad and Tobago are investigating if two of that country’s citizens were on a ship destroyed on Oct. 14.



Update: 10/18/2025; This article has been updated with comments from Colombian President Gustavo Petro.  


 








Task & Purpose Video


Each week on Tuesdays and Fridays our team will bring you analysis of military tech, tactics, and doctrine.