Under my Standing Authorities as Commander-in-Chief, this morning, the Secretary of War, ordered a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO) conducting narcotrafficking in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility — just off the Coast of Venezuela. Intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking narcotics, was associated with illicit narcoterrorist networks, and was transiting along a known DTO route. The strike was conducted in International Waters, and six male narcoterrorists aboard the vessel were killed in the strike. No U.S. Forces were harmed. Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!!!!

Ione WellsSouth America Correspondent andNadine YousifThe US has struck another vessel off the coast of Venezuela on Tuesday, killing six people, President Donald Trump has said. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the vessel belonged to "narcoterrorists" and that it was "trafficking narcotics". This is the fifth strike of its kind by the Trump administration on a boat accused of trafficking drugs on international waters since September. In total, 27 people have been reported killed, but the US has not provided evidence or details about identities of the vessels or those on board them.Some lawyers have accused the US of breaching international law, and neighbouring nations like Colombia and Venezuela have condemned the strikes.In his Truth Social post, Trump said "intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking narcotics, was associated with illicit narcoterrorist networks, and was transiting along a known" route for smuggling. He also posted an aerial surveillance video showing a small boat on water that is struck by a missile and explodes.US strike on 'Venezuela drug boat': What do we know, and was it legal?What is Trump's goal as US bombs 'Venezuela drugs boat'?Trump did not specify the nationality of those on board, or what drug smuggling organisation they are suspected of belonging to. He added that no US military personnel were injured. The strike comes after a recent leaked memo sent to Congress, and reported on by US media, that said the administration determined the US was in a "non-international armed conflict" with drug cartels. It has also deployed multiple warships to the Caribbean. The US has positioned its strikes on alleged drug-trafficking vessels as self-defence. Many lawyers questioning the legality of such military action.Framing this as an active armed conflict is likely a way for Trump to justify using more extreme wartime powers – for example killing "enemy fighters" even if they have not posed a violent threat, or detaining people indefinitely.While it is true that some drug trafficking occurs in Venezuela, and some cartels operate in the region that some of these vessels allegedly have originated from, it is not considered a hotspot for drug trafficking compared to some other locations in the region.As a result, many believe this is part of a wider political campaign to put military pressure on Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro.The strikes come after the US announced a $50m (£37m) reward for any information leading to the arrest of Maduro - whose election to lead the country has been widely rejected by the international community - on drug-trafficking charges.Venezuela's government has reacted to previous recent strikes with anger. Maduro denies American accusations that he is involved with drugs trafficking, while another official has questioned the veracity of footage posted by Trump.

Police in Trinidad and Tobago are investigating whether two citizens were among six people killed in a US strike on a boat allegedly transporting drugs from Venezuela.Without providing evidence, Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the strike killed six “narcoterrorists” in international waters, allegedly transporting drugs from Venezuela to the United States.Trinidadian police said residents of the village of Las Cuevas reported that the two citizens were on the sunken vessel, but could not confirm their deaths.At least 27 people have been killed so far in such attacks off the coast of Venezuela, which the Trump administration says are necessary to protect the United States from smuggled narcotics from Venezuela.Lenore Burnley, mother of 26-year-old Trinidadian fisherman Chad Joseph, told AFP by phone that people her family know in Venezuela “told them he was on the boat”.“According to maritime law, if you see a boat, you are supposed to stop the boat and intercept it, not just blow it up. That’s our Trinidadian maritime law and I think every fisherman and every human knows that,” she said.Burnley said her son was planning to return to Trinidad and Tobago after spending three months with family in Venezuela, just 6.8 miles (11km) away.Local media reported another Trinidadian victim from Las Cuevas, known as Samaroo to locals.In response to US military buildup in the region, Nicolás Maduro, ordered large-scale military exercises on Wednesday and said he was mobilizing the military, police and a civilian militia to defend his country.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. military had killed six people in a strike on a boat that, Trump said, was “trafficking narcotics.” It was the fifth such strike in international waters since Sept. 2, with a combined death toll of 27 people. The Trump administration has promised even more to come, but we already know enough about these strikes to call them what they are: extrajudicial killings that are flagrantly illegal under both domestic and international law. No one is under any illusions that anyone in the administration is likely to listen to the voices across the political spectrum who agree with this conclusion: Vice President (and Yale Law graduate) JD Vance declared he doesn’t “give a s---” whether the strikes are illegal. But it is critical that the rest of us refuse to treat these strikes as a new normal. Everyone who cares about the rule of law and human rights must continue to press for transparency, accountability and an immediate end to this illegal and lethal campaign. Whatever the government now says in an attempt to cover its tracks does not magically unlock legal authority to use force.For weeks, the administration has trumpeted these strikes with grainy videos of explosions and unsupported allegations that the people killed are drug cartel members and “terrorists” (neither of which would justify extrajudicial killings). But underneath the White House’s bravado, The Wall Street Journal reported in mid-September that “some military lawyers and other Defense Department officials are raising concerns about the legal implications,” including for potential violations of the federal criminal murder statute. And they are right to worry, because all indications are that these strikes have violated the federal criminal murder statute as well as the prohibition on murder in the Uniform Code of Military Justice, with few plausible defenses in sight.Subsequently, the administration informed Congress that Trump unilaterally “determined” that the United States is in a noninternational armed conflict against certain gangs and cartels that it has (again unilaterally) designated as terrorist organizations. This was a transparent attempt to “legally backfill their operations,” Brian Finucane, a former State Department lawyer and expert in the laws of war, told The New York Times. And while CNN reports that the Office of Legal Counsel has produced a secret memo (which has not even been shown to Congress) that authorizes lethal strikes “against a secret and expansive list of cartels and suspected drug traffickers,” it’s not clear whether that legal opinion was issued before the U.S. started killing people at sea. The government’s apparent position is that drug cartels are engaged in an “armed attack” on the United States because (as The New York Times reported) “100,000 Americans die annually from [drug] overdoses.” Tragic as that is, drug cartels are criminal groups — and that’s in fact how our many drug laws deal with them and how the government has treated such groups throughout our history. Moreover, these strikes were conducted thousands of miles from American shores, and there does not seem to be any evidence that the boats targeted were even heading to the United States. In fact, Secretary of State Rubio said after the first lethal strike that the boat’s contents were “probably headed to Trinidad or some other country in the Caribbean.” In one case, the boat had literally turned around before it was bombed. In another, Colombian President Gustavo Petro alleged that the boat targeted was actually Colombian, with Colombian citizens on board. The Trump administration disputed that claim, but a new CNN report indicates that Colombians were deliberately targeted.In fact, whatever the government now says in an attempt to cover its tracks does not magically unlock legal authority to use force, and the boat strikes cannot be justified — full stop. There is no credible factual or legal argument that the United States is engaged in an armed conflict with any drug cartel under international law. Under international law, an armed conflict between a nation and a nonstate group — the kind of noninternational armed conflict the president is now claiming exists — requires “protracted armed violence between governmental authorities and organized armed groups or between such groups within a State.” Even if the law of war were to apply (and it absolutely does not), it would prohibit direct attacks against civilians who are not directly participating in the conflict.Drug smuggling has undoubtedly harmful consequences and costs, but it is not even arguably “armed violence,” let alone the kind of sustained violent clashes that meets the criteria for an armed conflict. And there is no evidence that the groups allegedly targeted in these boat strikes are sufficiently organized and conducting military hostilities and operations against the United States, either.Notably, the president has not asked Congress for any authorization for use of force or declaration of war. My organization, the ACLU, does not take positions on the political merits of U.S. conflicts abroad, but we have long insisted—from the Vietnam War to the bombing of Cambodia to the post-9/11 era—that the Constitution assigns only to Congress the power to authorize use of force. More from MSNBC DailyMust reads from Today's listJust as the president announcing an armed conflict does not make it so, Congress similarly cannot convert a deliberate series of criminal attacks into a lawful use of force. And whatever the identities of the 27 people the U.S. government has killed in these strikes, they are civilians under both international and domestic law. The murder statutes in both U.S. criminal and military law prohibit the use of lethal force against civilians, and no plausible exception applies here. Even if the law of war were to apply (and it absolutely does not), it would prohibit direct attacks against civilians who are not directly participating in the conflict — and that includes a drug cartel’s criminal activities do not clear the bar. The Trump administration’s astonishing assertion of authority to use lethal force would be laughed out of any courtroom anywhere — were its consequences not so absolutely serious.Congress, the courts and the American people must bring an end to the executive branch’s ever-more-capacious and unilateral expansions of authority to use lethal force abroad. Over the past 25 years, administrations of both parties have pushed aggressive theories of executive power by expansively interpreting the executive branch’s Article II and statutory powers. In areas of foreign affairs and national security in particular, the courts have for too long excessively deferred to the office of the president. The institutions with the power to check these activities should step up to actually do so. A decades-long one-way ratchet of executive power helped produce Trump’s latest legally and morally abominable acts, and these strikes should be a wake-up call to all.Brett Max KaufmanBrett Max Kaufman is senior counsel in the ACLU’s Center for Democracy.

Police in Trinidad and Tobago told AFP on Thursday they are investigating whether two citizens were among six people killed in a US strike on a boat allegedly transporting drugs from Venezuela.Without providing evidence, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the strike killed six "narcoterrorists" in international waters, allegedly transporting drugs from Venezuela to the United States.Trinidadian police said residents of Las Cuevas village reported that two citizens were on the sunken vessel, but could not confirm their deaths.At least 27 people have been killed so far in such attacks off the coast of Venezuela, which the Trump administration says are necessary to protect the United States from smuggled narcotics from Venezuela.Lenore Burnley, mother of 26-year-old Trinidadian fisherman Chad Joseph, told AFP by phone that people her family know in Venezuela "told them he was on the boat"."According to maritime law, if you see a boat, you are supposed to stop the boat and intercept it, not just blow it up. That's our Trinidadian maritime law and I think every fisherman and every human knows that," she said.Burnley said her son was planning to return to Trinidad and Tobago after spending three months with family in Venezuela, just 6.8 miles (11 kilometres) away.Local media reported another Trinidadian victim from Las Cuevas, known as Samaroo to locals.In response to US military build-up in the region, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered large-scale military exercises on Wednesday and said he was mobilizing the military, police and a civilian militia to defend his country.pgf-ba/sla/dhw

Se­nior Re­porter jensen.lavende@guardian.co.tt Rel­a­tives and friends of Las Cuevas res­i­dent Chad “Char­po” Joseph say the US air strike off Venezuela that killed him was an act of wicked­ness. Pres­i­dent Don­ald Trump first broke the news about the strike in post on so­cial me­dia on Tues­day.“In­tel­li­gence con­firmed the ves­sel was traf­fick­ing nar­cotics, was as­so­ci­at­ed with il­lic­it nar­coter­ror­ist net­works, and was tran­sit­ing along a known route for smug­gling,” Trump wrote.The ac­tion was part of the Unit­ed States’ con­tin­u­ing crack­down on what it says is the nar­co-traf­fick­ing ac­tiv­i­ty em­a­nat­ing out of Venezuela. It was the fifth such ex­er­cise by the US mil­i­tary in the re­gion since Trump or­dered the mil­i­tary to take up strate­gic po­si­tions in the Caribbean Sea. Venezuela Pres­i­dent Nico­las Maduro is deemed a nar­co-traf­fick­er by the US, which still has a US$50 mil­lion boun­ty on his head.In all, 27 peo­ple have been killed in five air strikes by the US, with Trump say­ing the suc­cess in the seas may now lead to a land at­tack on traf­fick­ers. Yes­ter­day, how­ev­er, Las Cuevas res­i­dents learned Joseph, 26, was one of two Trinida­di­ans who were on the ves­sel along­side four Venezue­lans dur­ing Tues­day’s US strike. The oth­er man was iden­ti­fied on­ly as Sama­roo. In the sea­side com­mu­ni­ty yes­ter­day, one of Joseph’s friends, who iden­ti­fied him­self on­ly as Kern, said he found the ac­tion by the US was wrong. “What the US do­ing there, I think it is in­hu­mane. All yuh blow the boat up, what ev­i­dence it have re­al­ly is drugs and stuff like that? Leh we say is guns or hu­man traf­fick­ing or any­thing, what is the clo­sure that the fam­i­ly is hav­ing now?” he asked. Kern, who spoke with Guardian Me­dia while four oth­er men were play­ing cards, said the at­mos­phere in the fish­ing com­mu­ni­ty was one of sad­ness. Those with him un­der a shed ques­tioned the le­gal­i­ty of the bomb­ing of the fish­ing ves­sel. His con­cern about Joseph’s fam­i­ly get­ting clo­sure was shared by Joseph’s moth­er Lenore Burn­ley, who said the sec­ond of her six chil­dren was not in­volved in drugs. With no body to bury or cre­mate, Burn­ley said she is trust­ing in God for the clo­sure she needs. “I leave every­thing in God’s hand. He knows, he sees, and I does say he does give you what you can bear. He wouldn’t give you what you can­not bear. So, I leave every­thing to God.” Burn­ley, like Kern, is not pleased with how her son was killed. “I find it wrong be­cause it have peo­ple will be in­no­cent and they will still do and say oth­er­wise. So, I can’t jus­ti­fy for oth­er peo­ple, but it’s not right. The sea law is they sup­posed to stop the boat and in­ter­cept it, not blow it up like that.” She added that the on­ly ev­i­dence she has that her son was killed were re­ports from oth­ers. Joseph’s grand­moth­er, Chris­tine Clement, said her grand­son was liv­ing Venezuela for the past three months and had tried to re­turn home be­fore but that failed. The 69-year-old said it would have been bet­ter for him to re­main in Venezuela and make a life there. “The first time he was com­ing up, they shoot up the boat, he end up sur­viv­ing. Some peo­ple take care of him. Two days ago, I ask his moth­er when he com­ing and she say some­thing hap­pen to the boat and he couldn’t come back again and had to turn back.” Clement’s hus­band, like his daugh­ter and wife, said he is trust­ing in God for jus­tice and clo­sure. But he minced no words when shar­ing his feel­ings to­wards the US’ ac­tion. “I watch that as wicked­ness. Why... what you killing the peo­ple chil­dren for? It have noth­ing in that, it not sup­posed to be that way.” Told that his grand­son’s death is linked to his sup­posed in­volve­ment in drug traf­fick­ing, Clement said: “Nah, nah, nah! The boy is not no drug traf­fick­er. They does make their lil run and come back.” He said he was shocked by the at­tack, as his grand­son had nor­mal­ly made such trips with­out in­ci­dents in the past. Af­ter the first US air strike on Sep­tem­ber 2, Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar said she had no sym­pa­thy for traf­fick­ers” and that the US mil­i­tary should “kill them all vi­o­lent­ly.” Ear­li­er this month, af­ter the fourth at­tack, Per­sad-Bisses­sar said she re­mains in sup­port of US strikes on al­leged Venezue­lan drug traf­fick­ers. Her sup­port came af­ter bi­lat­er­al dis­cus­sions on en­er­gy and na­tion­al se­cu­ri­ty in Wash­ing­ton, DC, with US Sec­re­tary of State Mar­co Ru­bio. Calls and mes­sages to Per­sad-Bisses­sar, De­fence Min­is­ter Wayne Sturge and For­eign Af­fairs Min­is­ter Sean Sobers all went unan­swered.

SummaryFamily of Chad Joseph believe he was killed in US strike on TuesdayRelatives say Joseph was a fisherman, call his death 'perfect murder'Legal experts, Democrats raise concerns about legality of strikesLAS CUEVAS, Trinidad and Tobago, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Relatives of a Trinidadian man who say he was killed in a U.S. military strike on a boat in the Caribbean this week are demanding evidence to back up allegations by U.S. President Donald Trump that those who died were trafficking drugs.Trump has ordered a large U.S. military buildup in the southern Caribbean and U.S. troops there have conducted at least six strikes on boats the administration says were involved in drug trafficking, without providing evidence.Read about innovative ideas and the people working on solutions to global crises with the Reuters Beacon newsletter. Sign up here.At least 27 people have been killed. The U.S. has described some of them as Venezuelans, while Colombian President Gustavo Petro has suggested others were from his country.Family members of 26-year-old Chad Joseph said they believe he was killed in a strike on Tuesday, along with another Trinidadian man named by some media as Rishi Samaroo."I'm feeling very hurt. You know why? Donald Trump took a father, a brother, an uncle, a nephew from families. Donald Trump don't care what he is doing," said Joseph's cousin, Afisha Clement, 41, who said Joseph was humble, calm and a father figure to her young daughter."If you say a boat has narcotics on it, where is the narcotics? We want evidence, we want proof. There is nothing," she added.Joseph's great-uncle, Cecil McClean, 93, called the strike "perfect murder"."There is nothing they could prove that they are coming across our waters with drugs," McClean said. "How could Trump prove the boat was bringing narcotics?"Item 1 of 6 Cornell Clement, who believes his grandson Chad Joseph was killed in a U.S. military strike on a boat in the Caribbean, poses for a photograph outside his home as Joseph's family demands evidence to support President Donald Trump’s claim that the victims were drug traffickers, in Las Cuevas, Trinidad and Tobago October 16, 2025. REUTERS/Andrea de Silva[1/6]Cornell Clement, who believes his grandson Chad Joseph was killed in a U.S. military strike on a boat in the Caribbean, poses for a photograph outside his home as Joseph's family demands evidence to support President Donald Trump’s claim that the victims were drug traffickers, in Las Cuevas,... Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab Read moreFamily members said Joseph was a fisherman who had traveled to Venezuela, where he had relatives, to find work six months ago.Joseph's mother Lenore Burnley said she has so far not been contacted by anyone from Trinidad and Tobago's government, adding she saw social media posts naming her son as one of those killed in the strike."I put everything in God's hands, God will give me my satisfaction," Burnley said, when asked what she would say to Trump.The Trump administration has provided scant information on the strikes, including the identities of those killed or details about the cargos. A new strike on Thursday appeared to be the first to leave survivors, a U.S. official told Reuters.Legal experts have questioned why the U.S. military is carrying out the strikes instead of the Coast Guard, which is the main U.S. maritime law enforcement agency, and why other efforts to halt the shipments aren't made before resorting to deadly strikes. Democrats have said the administration has failed to provide Congress with any credible justification or intelligence to justify its actions.The Trump administration argues it is fighting Venezuelan narcoterrorists, making the strikes legitimate.Trump also confirmed on Wednesday that he authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct covert operations in Venezuela, marking a sharp escalation in U.S. efforts to pressure Maduro, who the U.S. has accused of links to drug trafficking and criminal groups.Maduro denies the accusations and has repeatedly alleged the U.S. is hoping to drive him from power.Venezuela on Thursday asked the United Nations Security Council to determine that deadly U.S. strikes on vessels off its coast are illegal.Reporting by Andrea de Silva; Writing by Julia Symmes Cobb; Editing by Lincoln Feast.Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

LAS CUEVAS: Relatives of a Trinidadian man they believe was killed in a United States military strike on a boat in the Caribbean are demanding evidence to support allegations by President Donald Trump that those who died were trafficking drugs. Trump has ordered a significant United States military buildup in the southern Caribbean where troops have conducted at least six strikes on boats allegedly involved in drug trafficking without providing evidence. At least 27 people have been killed in these operations with some described as Venezuelans and others suggested to be from Colombia. Family members of 26-year-old Chad Joseph believe he was killed in a Tuesday strike along with another Trinidadian man named in media reports as Rishi Samaroo. Joseph’s cousin Afisha Clement expressed deep hurt stating Trump took a father and brother from families while questioning the lack of narcotics evidence. She demanded concrete proof that the boat was carrying drugs insisting there is currently nothing to support the administration’s claims. Joseph’s great-uncle Cecil McClean characterized the strike as a perfect murder challenging Trump to prove the boat was transporting narcotics. Family members described Joseph as a fisherman who had traveled to Venezuela six months earlier to find work where he had relatives. Joseph’s mother Lenore Burnley revealed she has not been contacted by Trinidad and Tobago’s government and learned about her son’s death through social media posts. She expressed putting everything in God’s hands for satisfaction when asked what message she would send to Trump. The Trump administration has provided minimal information about the strikes including identities of those killed or details about boat cargos. A United States official indicated a Thursday strike appeared to be the first to leave survivors among the operations. Legal experts have questioned why the military rather than the Coast Guard is conducting these strikes and why deadly force is used before other interdiction methods. Democrats have stated the administration failed to provide Congress with credible justification or intelligence for its actions. The Trump administration argues it is fighting Venezuelan narcoterrorists making the strikes legitimate under this justification. Trump confirmed he authorized Central Intelligence Agency covert operations in Venezuela escalating United States pressure on Maduro. The United States accuses Maduro of links to drug trafficking and criminal groups which he consistently denies. Venezuela asked the United Nations Security Council to determine that deadly United States strikes off its coast are illegal. – Reuters

Rip …. Can’t believe this day would come babe . Rest in peace . You were the love of my life . I don’t know how to process this

Two men believed to be Trinbagonians were killed in the latest U.S. drone strike off Venezuelan waters. And now a Las Cuevas family is demanding answers. They say Chad Joseph wasn’t a trafficker, just a young man trying to come home. Jensen La Vende went to the fishing village to speak with the family.

TWO TRINIDADIANS KILLED IN U.S AIR STRIKE Two Trinidadian fishermen were killed in a United States military airstrike off the coast of Venezuela. This killing have caused the Las Cuevas community to be in grief. Dead are Chad “Charpo” Joseph, 26, of Las Cuevas and Rishi "Samaroo" Samaroo 41 of Celestine Trace, Maraval. According to the United States President Donald Trump, the strike targeted a vessel allegedly linked to narcotics trafficking and terrorist networks through the Caribbean. It was the fifth U.S “kinetic strike” in the region since the deployment of military assets under the administration anti-narcotics campaign. In total, 27 people have been killed in five similar operations, in which Washington claims are aimed at dismantling drug routes linked to Venezuela. The relatives of the two Trinidadians have condemned the attack, calling it “inhumane” and “unjustified.” Joseph’s mother, Lenore Burnley, said her son was not involved in drugs and described his death as “wrong and cruel.” She said she has no body to bury or cremate and is relying on faith for closure. “The sea law is they supposed to stop the boat and intercept it, not blow it up like that,” Burnley said. His grandmother, Christine Clement, added that Joseph had been living in Venezuela for the past three months and had previously survived another attack while trying to return home by sea. Residents of Las Cuevas, expressed anger, questioning the legality of the strike and the lack of evidence to justify the use of lethal force. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has not issued an official statement. The incident adds to growing tension over the United States military activity in Caribbean waters amid ongoing political friction with the Venezuelan government. https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va9M56905MUWVN1HtJ3L TWO TRINIDADIANS KILLED IN U.S AIR STRIKE Two Trinidadian fishermen were killed in a United States military airstrike off the coast of Venezuela. This killing have caused the Las Cuevas community to be in grief. Dead are Chad “Charpo” Joseph, 26, of Las Cuevas and Rishi "Samaroo" Samaroo 41 of Celestine Trace, Maraval. According to the United States President Donald Trump, the strike targeted a vessel allegedly linked to narcotics trafficking and terrorist networks through the Caribbean. It was the fifth U.S “kinetic strike” in the region since the deployment of military assets under the administration anti-narcotics campaign. In total, 27 people have been killed in five similar operations, in which Washington claims are aimed at dismantling drug routes linked to Venezuela. The relatives of the two Trinidadians have condemned the attack, calling it “inhumane” and “unjustified.” Joseph’s mother, Lenore Burnley, said her son was not involved in drugs and described his death as “wrong and cruel.” She said she has no body to bury or cremate and is relying on faith for closure. “The sea law is they supposed to stop the boat and intercept it, not blow it up like that,” Burnley said. His grandmother, Christine Clement, added that Joseph had been living in Venezuela for the past three months and had previously survived another attack while trying to return home by sea. Residents of Las Cuevas, expressed anger, questioning the legality of the strike and the lack of evidence to justify the use of lethal force. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago has not issued an official statement. The incident adds to growing tension over the United States military activity in Caribbean waters amid ongoing political friction with the Venezuelan government. https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va9M56905MUWVN1HtJ3L

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTTrinidadian Family Says U.S. Military Killed Relative in Boat AttackFor the first time, one of the 27 people killed in U.S. airstrikes on suspected drug vessels has been publicly identified.Boats in Las Cuevas, a fishing village on the north coast of Trinidad. The region, which is close to Venezuela, is known by experts as a drug trafficking corridor.Credit...Prior BeharryOct. 16, 2025Chad Joseph, a 26-year-old from Trinidad and Tobago who had been living in Venezuela in recent months, told his family he would soon be taking a short boat ride back home.He has yet to return, and now his family fears the worst.On Thursday, his name spread across social media, with users saying that he was one of six people aboard a suspected drug vessel that had been blown up by the U.S. military this week.Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.Frances Robles is a Times reporter covering Latin America and the Caribbean. She has reported on the region for more than 25 years.Related ContentAdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENT

Trinidad and Tobago police said Wednesday they are investigating the possible deaths of two of their citizens in the latest U.S. attack on a vessel allegedly carrying drugs sailing off the coast of Venezuela. U.S. President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that six people have died in this attack, adding to at least four others since Washington deployed military vessels near the Venezuelan coast in August under the guise of combating drug trafficking. The Trinidadian police investigation began after residents of the fishing village of Las Cuevas in northern Trinidad alerted authorities about the presence of two compatriots on the vessel. Police, however, have not been able to confirm or deny the information. Meanwhile, the mother of one of the presumed deceased has complained about the attack. "The law of the sea is that if you see a boat, you're supposed to stop the boat and intercept it, not just blow it up," Lenore Burnley, mother of 26-year-old Chad Joseph, who allegedly died in Tuesday's attack, told AFP by telephone. Burnley said acquaintances in Venezuela called Joseph's grandparents in Las Cuevas and told them he was on the boat. Joseph was a fisherman who had been in Venezuela for the past three months, Burnley said from his home in Matelot, also on the northern coast of Trinidad, the main island of the archipelago, located just 10 kilometers from Venezuela. "He also has people he knows. Venezuela is just a stone's throw from here, you know how many people from here have family there and they leave," the mother added. "I see people posting all kinds of disrespectful and derogatory things on social media, and I don't like it. They don't know him, so why are they judging him?" he added, referring to the drug trafficking accusations. According to media reports, the other deceased was also a fisherman and resident of Las Cuevas. He was known as Samaroo.

La Policía de Trinidad y Tobago informó el miércoles que investiga la posible muerte de dos de sus ciudadanos en el último ataque de Estados Unidos contra una embarcación que presuntamente transportaba droga y que navegaba frente a las costas de Venezuela.El presidente estadounidense, Donald Trump, anunció el martes la muerte de seis personas en este ataque se suma a al menos otros cuatro desde que Washington desplegó en agosto los buques militares cerca de las costas venezolanas con el argumento de combatir el narcotráfico.La investigación de la policía trinitense comenzó luego de que residentes de la aldea de pescadores Las Cuevas, en el norte de Trinidad, alertaran a las autoridades sobre la presencia de dos compatriotas en la embarcación.La Policía, sin embargo, no ha podido confirmar o desmentir la información. Entre tanto, la madre de uno de los presuntos fallecidos ha reclamado por el ataque."La ley del mar es que si ves un barco, se supone que debes detener el barco e interceptarlo, no solo volarlo", dijo vía telefónica a la AFP Lenore Burnley, madre de Chad Joseph de 26 años y quien presuntamente falleció en el ataque del martes.Burnley dijo que unos conocidos en Venezuela llamaron a los abuelos de Joseph en Las Cuevas y les habían dicho que estaba en el barco.Joseph era un pescador que había estado en Venezuela durante los últimos tres meses, señaló Burnley desde su casa en Matelot, también en la costa norte de Trinidad, la isla principal del archipiélago, ubicada a solo diez kilómetros de Venezuela."También tiene gente que conoce. Venezuela está a tiro de piedra de aquí, sabes cuánta gente de aquí tiene familia allá y se va", añadió la madre. "Veo gente publicando todo tipo de cosas irrespetuosas y despectivas en redes sociales, y no me gusta. No lo conocen, ¿y por qué lo juzgan?", añadió sobre las acusaciones de narcotráfico.Según medios, el otro fallecido también era pescador y habitante de Las Cuevas. Era conocido como Samaroo.

This Tuesday, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, confirmed what would be the fifth lethal kinetic attack against a vessel, allegedly related to drug trafficking networks, off Venezuelan waters in his supposed fight against the trafficking of psychotropic substances. The leader of the White House assured that six people died. Among the deceased were two men of Trinidadian nationality, one of them identified as Chad Joseph (26) and Samaroo. His family in Las Cuevas denies that he was linked to drug trafficking and assures that he was only a fisherman trying to return home after several months in Venezuela. Cornell Clement, Joseph's grandfather, expressed his outrage and questioned the methods of the United States. "No, no. No, the boy is not a drug dealer. They make them run and come back," said Clement, who says he has no choice but to trust in God. Christine Clement, the grandmother, revealed that Joseph had been in Venezuela for the past three months and was desperate to return to Trinidad and Tobago. She indicated that previous attempts failed. The first time, the boat was fired upon, and Joseph managed to survive on a small beach. In a more recent attempt, the young man had to return due to a problem with the boat. Lenore Burnley, the young man's mother, also confirmed that her son was not involved in drugs. "Without a body to bury or cremate. I leave everything in the hands of God," she told Guardian Media, quoted by CNC3, adding that the only evidence she has that her son was killed is reports from other people. Residents of the coastal towns of Las Cuevas and Las Pumas also reject the accusations and call the death unjust. One of Joseph’s friends, who gave his name only as Kern, said he considered the US action to be wrong. “What the US is doing there seems inhumane to me. What evidence do they have of drugs and things like that? If we say weapons, human trafficking or anything like that, what do you think of the closure the family is getting now?” he asked. Meanwhile, authorities in Trinidad and Tobago, including Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and the ministers of defense and foreign affairs, did not respond to community outcry. The attack was the fifth since September 2, bringing the death toll of suspected drug traffickers to 27, and is part of an ongoing US crackdown on what it says is drug trafficking activity emanating from Venezuela. Venezuela has repeatedly denounced the attack as a threat to the country’s territorial integrity, while President Nicolás Maduro has called the attacks an “excuse to justify military intervention”; He also maintains that US operations violate international law. This accusation has been supported by Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who on October 8 stated that there were indications that one of the last boats bombed was Colombian with Colombian citizens inside: "I hope their families appear and file a complaint."

Este martes, el presidente de los Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, confirmó lo que sería el quinto ataque cinético letal contra una embarcación, presuntamente relacionada con redes del narcotráfico, frente a aguas venezolanas en su supuesto combate contra el trasiego de sustancias psicotrópicas.  El líder de la Casa Blanca aseguró que seis personas murieron.Entre los fallecidos, se encontraban dos hombres de nacionalidad trinitense, uno de ellos identificado como Chad Joseph (26) y Samaroo. Su familia en Las Cuevas niega que estuviera vinculado al narcotráfico y asegura que solo era un pescador que intentaba regresar a casa tras varios meses en Venezuela.Cornell Clement, el abuelo de Joseph, expresó su indignación y cuestionó los métodos de Estados Unidos. "No, no. No, el chico no es un traficante de drogas. Que los hacen correr y regresar", declaró Clement, quien afirma no tener más opción que confiar en Dios.Christine Clement, la abuela, reveló que Joseph había estado en Venezuela durante los últimos tres meses y estaba desesperado por regresar a Trinidad y Tobago. Indicó que intentos anteriores fracasaron. La primera vez, el barco fue atacado a tiros, y Joseph logró sobrevivir en una pequeña playa. En un intento más reciente, el joven tuvo que regresar debido a un problema con la embarcación.Lenore Burnley, madre del joven, también confirmó que su hijo no estaba involucrado en drogas. "Sin un cuerpo para enterrar o incinerar. Dejo todo en manos de Dios", declaró al medio Guardian Media, citado por CNC3, al agregar que la única evidencia que tiene de que su hijo fue asesinado son los informes de otras personas.Los residentes de los pueblos costeros Las Cuevas y Las Pumas también rechazan las acusaciones y califican la muerte de injusta. Uno de los amigos de Joseph, que se identificó solo como Kern, dijo que consideraba errónea la acción de Estados Unidos."Lo que hace Estados Unidos allí me parece inhumano. ¿Qué pruebas tiene de drogas y cosas así? Si decimos armas, tráfico de personas o algo así, ¿qué le parece el cierre que está teniendo la familia ahora?", preguntó.Mientras tanto, las autoridades de Trinidad y Tobago, incluida la primera ministra, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, y los ministros de Defensa y Exteriores, no respondieron a los reclamos de la comunidad.Este ataque fue el quinto desde el 2 de septiembre, elevando a 27 el número de presuntos narcotraficantes muertos, y forma parte de la continua ofensiva de Estados Unidos contra lo que, según afirma, constituye actividad de narcotráfico proveniente de Venezuela.Venezuela ha denunciado reiteradamente que se trata de una amenaza a la integridad territorial del país, en tanto el presidente Nicolás Maduro ha calificado estas maniobras como una "excusa para justificar una intervención militar"; sostiene además que las operaciones estadounidenses violan el derecho internacional.A esta denuncia se ha sumado el presidente colombiano, Gustavo Petro, que el pasado 8 de octubre señaló que había indicios de que una de las últimas lanchas bombardeadas era colombiana con ciudadanos colombianos en su interior: "Espero que aparezcan sus familias y denuncien".

LAS CUEVAS: Relatives of a Trinidadian man they believe was killed in a United States military strike on a boat in the Caribbean are demanding evidence to support allegations by President Donald Trump that those who died were trafficking drugs. Trump has ordered a significant United States military buildup in the southern Caribbean where troops have conducted at least six strikes on boats allegedly involved in drug trafficking without providing evidence. At least 27 people have been killed in these operations with some described as Venezuelans and others suggested to be from Colombia. Family members of 26-year-old Chad Joseph believe he was killed in a Tuesday strike along with another Trinidadian man named in media reports as Rishi Samaroo. Joseph’s cousin Afisha Clement expressed deep hurt stating Trump took a father and brother from families while questioning the lack of narcotics evidence. She demanded concrete proof that the boat was carrying drugs insisting there is currently nothing to support the administration’s claims. Joseph’s great-uncle Cecil McClean characterized the strike as a perfect murder challenging Trump to prove the boat was transporting narcotics. Family members described Joseph as a fisherman who had traveled to Venezuela six months earlier to find work where he had relatives. Joseph’s mother Lenore Burnley revealed she has not been contacted by Trinidad and Tobago’s government and learned about her son’s death through social media posts. She expressed putting everything in God’s hands for satisfaction when asked what message she would send to Trump. The Trump administration has provided minimal information about the strikes including identities of those killed or details about boat cargos. A United States official indicated a Thursday strike appeared to be the first to leave survivors among the operations. Legal experts have questioned why the military rather than the Coast Guard is conducting these strikes and why deadly force is used before other interdiction methods. Democrats have stated the administration failed to provide Congress with credible justification or intelligence for its actions. The Trump administration argues it is fighting Venezuelan narcoterrorists making the strikes legitimate under this justification. Trump confirmed he authorized Central Intelligence Agency covert operations in Venezuela escalating United States pressure on Maduro. The United States accuses Maduro of links to drug trafficking and criminal groups which he consistently denies. Venezuela asked the United Nations Security Council to determine that deadly United States strikes off its coast are illegal. – Reuters

"Evil Act" on the High Seas: The Story of Chad Joseph Chad Joseph wasn't a drug trafficker. He was a 26-year-old fisherman from Las Cuevas, Trinidad, who just wanted to return to his family after three months of working in Venezuela. A missile attack took his life. His mother has no body to bury. Her family and community demand answers. Help us ensure his story is not forgotten. Share this video and comment: Do you think it's justified? #JusticeForChad #Caribbean #HumanRights #TrinidadAndTobago #Venezuela #ViralStory #ForYou

"Acto de maldad" en alta mar: La historia de Chad Joseph Chad Joseph no era un narcotraficante. Era un pescador de 26 años de Las Cuevas, Trinidad, que solo quería volver con su familia después de trabajar tres meses en Venezuela. Un ataque con misiles le arrebató la vida. Su madre no tiene un cuerpo para darle sepultura. Su familia y comunidad exigen respuestas. Ayúdanos a que su historia no quede en el olvido. Comparte este video y comenta: ¿Crees que está justificado? #JusticiaParaChad #Caribe #DerechosHumanos #TrinidadYTabago #Venezuela #HistoriaViral #ParaTi

#WORLD President Donald Trump announced this morning that he ordered a "lethal kinetic strike" against a vessel allegedly affiliated with a designated terrorist organization, which was transporting narcotics off the coast of Venezuela. @itsDCastrillon According to the president's announcement on his social media platform, Truth Social, the attack on the drug boat took place "in international waters" and six men on board were killed. Although reports of these attacks have been confusing, this would be the seventh such incident reported by Trump. http://Caracol.com.co

#MUNDO El presidente Donald Trump anunció que esta mañana ordenó un “ataque cinético letal” contra un buque presuntamente afiliado a una organización terrorista designada, que transportaba narcóticos frente a la costa de Venezuela. @itsDCastrillon Según el anuncio del mandatario hecho en su red social Truth Social, el ataque a la narcolancha se llevó a cabo “en aguas internacionales” y seis hombres a bordo murieron. Aunque los reportes sobre estos ataques han sido confusos, este sería el séptimo incidente de este tipo reportado por Trump. http://Caracol.com.co

As we anticipated, missiles are falling not only on boats carrying cocaine but also on boats belonging to ordinary fishermen. The Caribbean is a sea full of fishermen. For many families, fishing is their livelihood, and for many fishermen, the sea is frightening because a missile could hit them.

Cómo preveíamos no solo caen misiles sobre lanchas con cocaína sino sobre lanchas de simples pescadores. El Caribe es un mar lleno de pescadores. Para muchas familias el sustento es la pesca y para muchos pescadores el mar da miedo porque puede caer un misil.

JUSTICE OR BARBARISM? Chad Joseph, a 26-year-old fisherman and father of three stepsons, was killed at sea by a US missile attack off the coast of Venezuela. The attack left six dead, including Chad and Samaroo, both citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. Their families demand justice and claim they were innocent victims of a military offensive that has already resulted in 27 murders in a declared peace zone. Lenore Burnley, Chad's mother, has no body to bury. Cornel Clement, his grandfather, calls it "an act of evil." And his friend Kern sums it up like this: "Inhumane." Who is responsible for these deaths?

¿JUSTICIA O BARBARIE? Chad Joseph, pescador de 26 años, padre de tres hijastros, fue asesinado en el mar por un ataque con misiles de EE.UU. frente a las costas de Venezuela. El ataque dejó 6 muertos, entre ellos Chad y Samaroo, ambos ciudadanos de Trinidad y Tobago. Sus familias exigen justicia y denuncian que fueron víctimas inocentes de una ofensiva militar que ya suma 27 asesinatos en una zona declarada de paz. Lenore Burnley, madre de Chad, no tiene cuerpo para enterrar. Cornel Clement, su abuelo, lo llama “un acto de maldad”. Y su amigo Kern lo resume así: “Inhumano”. ¿Quién responde por estas muertes?

Chad "Charpo" Joseph, 26, and another man identified as Samaroo are the Trinidadians killed in a US attack on a boat on October 14 that President Donald Trump claimed was carrying drugs. The other four dead are presumed to be Venezuelans. Two of the six dead in the downing of a "narco-boat" reported by the United States on October 14 were Trinidadians. This was reported by family and friends, who questioned the actions of the Donald Trump administration and denied involvement in drug trafficking activities. Chad "Charpo" Joseph, 26, and another man identified as Samaroo are the victims reported by family members and residents of Las Cuevas, a coastal town in the north of the island of Trinidad. They considered the US attack, which President Donald Trump identified as off the coast of Venezuela, to be an act of malice. "Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was smuggling narcotics, was associated with illicit narco-terrorism networks, and was transiting a known smuggling route," he wrote. Joseph's mother, Lenore Burnley, assured Guardian Media that her son was not involved in drugs. "I think it's wrong because there are innocent people out there, and yet they accuse them and say something else. I can't speak for others, but it's not right. The law of the sea says the vessel should be stopped and intercepted, not blown up like that." *Read also: US attacks seventh "narco-boat" in the Caribbean: says six men died In total, at least 27 people have died in seven US airstrikes; however, the identities or nationalities of all those killed have not been clarified. Trump stated that, after the success at sea, he could now launch a ground attack against the drug traffickers. Burnley added that the only evidence she has that her son died is reports from others. With no body to bury or cremate, he said he trusts God to bring him the closure he needs. “I leave everything in God’s hands. He knows, he sees, and I say he gives you what you can handle. He doesn’t give you more than you can resist. So I leave everything in God’s hands.” Joseph’s grandmother, Christine Clement, said her grandson had been living in Venezuela for the past three months and had tried to return home earlier, without success. The 69-year-old said it would have been better for him to stay in Venezuela and build his life there. “The first time he came, the boat was shot at, but he managed to survive. Some people took care of him. Two days ago, I asked his mother when he was coming, and she told me something happened to the boat, and he couldn’t get back and had to turn back,” she said. Joseph’s grandfather, like his daughter and wife, said he trusts God for justice and closure, while questioning the U.S.’s actions. “I see that as evil.” "Why... why are they killing people's children? There was nothing there, it shouldn't have been like this," he stated. Pointing out his grandson's alleged involvement in drug trafficking, Clement responded: "No, no, no! The boy is not a drug trafficker. They just ran their little games and came back." One of Joseph's friends, who identified himself only as Kern, also considers the US action misguided. "What the Americans are doing seems inhumane to me. They blew up the boat, but what evidence is there really that drugs or anything like that were there? Let's say it was weapons or human trafficking, what closure can the family have now?" he asked. After the first US airstrike on September 2, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said she had "no sympathy for the traffickers" and that the US military should "kill them all violently." In early October, Persad-Bissessar reaffirmed his support for US actions in the Caribbean after bilateral talks on energy and national security in Washington with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. With information from Guardia Media *Journalism in Venezuela exists in a hostile environment for the press, with dozens of legal instruments in place to punish speech, especially the "anti-hate," "anti-fascism," and "anti-blockade" laws. This content was written taking into account the threats and limits that have consequently been imposed on the dissemination of information from within the country. Post Views: 1,292

Chad «Charpo» Joseph, de 26 años, y otro hombre identificado como Samaroo son los trinitenses fallecidos por un ataque de EEUU el pasado 14 de octubre a una lancha que, aseguró el presidente Donald Trump, transportaba drogas. Se presume que los otros cuatro muertos eran venezolanos Dos de los seis muertos en el derribo de una «narcolancha» denunciada por Estados Unidos el pasado 14 de octubre eran trinitenses. Así lo denunciaron familiares y amigos, que cuestionaron las acciones del Gobierno de Donald Trump y rechazan que estuvieran involucrados en actividades de narcotráfico. Chad «Charpo» Joseph, de 26 años, y otro hombre identificado como Samaroo son las víctimas denunciadas por familiares y residentes de Las Cuevas, una localidad costera al norte de la isla de Trinidad. Consideraron que el ataque estadounidense, que el presidente Donald Trump identificó frente a las costas venezolanas, fue un acto de maldad. «La inteligencia confirmó que la embarcación estaba traficando narcóticos, estaba asociada con redes ilícitas de narcoterrorismo y transitaba por una ruta conocida de contrabando», escribió. La madre de Joseph, Lenore Burnley, aseguró a Guardian Media que su hijo no estaba involucrado en drogas. «Me parece mal, porque hay gente inocente y aun así los acusan y dicen otra cosa. No puedo hablar por los demás, pero no está bien. La ley del mar dice que se debe detener el barco e interceptarlo, no volarlo así». *Lea también: EEUU ataca séptima «narcolancha» en el Caribe: dice que murieron seis hombres En total, al menos 27 personas han muerto en siete ataques aéreos de EEUU; sin embargo no han quedado claras sus identidades o nacionalidades de todos los fallecidos. Trump afirmó que, tras el éxito en el mar, podría ahora dar paso a un ataque terrestre contra los narcotraficantes. Burnley agregó que la única prueba que tiene de que su hijo murió son los informes de otras personas. Sin cuerpo que enterrar o cremar, dijo que confía en Dios para obtener el cierre que necesita. «Dejo todo en manos de Dios. Él sabe, él ve, y yo digo que él te da lo que puedes soportar. No te da más de lo que puedes resistir. Así que dejo todo en manos de Dios». La abuela de Joseph, Christine Clement, dijo que su nieto había estado viviendo en Venezuela durante los últimos tres meses y que había intentado regresar a casa antes, sin éxito. La mujer, de 69 años, dijo que habría sido mejor que se quedara en Venezuela y construyera su vida allí. «La primera vez que venía, le dispararon al bote, pero logró sobrevivir. Algunas personas lo cuidaron. Hace dos días le pregunté a su madre cuándo venía y ella me dijo que algo le pasó al bote, que no pudo regresar y tuvo que devolverse», dijo. El abuelo de Joseph, al igual que su hija y su esposa, dijo que confía en Dios para obtener justicia y cierre, al tiempo que cuestionó las acciones de EEUU.  «Yo veo eso como una maldad. ¿Por qué… por qué están matando a los hijos de la gente? No había nada ahí, no debía ser así», afirmó. Al señalar la presunta vinculación de su nieto con el tráfico de drogas, Clement respondió: «¡No, no, no! El muchacho no es ningún narcotraficante. Ellos hacían sus pequeñas corridas y volvían». También uno de los amigos de Joseph, que se identificó solo como Kern, considera equivocada la acción de EEUU. «Lo que están haciendo los estadounidenses me parece inhumano. Volaron el bote, pero ¿qué evidencia hay realmente de que había drogas o cosas así? Digamos que fueran armas o trata de personas, ¿cuál es el cierre que puede tener ahora la familia?», se preguntó. Tras el primer ataque aéreo de EEUU el pasado 2 de septiembre, la primera ministra de Trinidad y Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, dijo que «no sentía simpatía por los traficantes» y que los militares estadounidenses deberían «matarlos a todos violentamente». A comienzos de octubre, Persad-Bissessar reafirmó su apoyo a las acciones de EEUU en el Caribe tras conversaciones bilaterales sobre energía y seguridad nacional en Washington con el secretario de Estado estadounidense, Marco Rubio. Con información de Guardia Media *El periodismo en Venezuela se ejerce en un entorno hostil para la prensa con decenas de instrumentos jurídicos dispuestos para el castigo de la palabra, especialmente las leyes «contra el odio», «contra el fascismo» y «contra el bloqueo». Este contenido fue escrito tomando en consideración las amenazas y límites que, en consecuencia, se han impuesto a la divulgación de informaciones desde dentro del país. Post Views: 1.292

#KnowThat U.S. President Donald Trump reported Tuesday that his country's military carried out another "lethal kinetic attack" against a ship in the Caribbean, just 12 nautical miles off the coast of Venezuela.

#SepaQue El presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump, informó este martes que el Ejército de su país realizó otro «ataque cinético letal» contra un barco en el Caribe, cerca de las costas de Venezuela, a escasas 12 millas náuticas.

US kills two Trinidadian and Tobagonian citizens in Caribbean waters Relatives of two Trinidadian and Tobagonian citizens, identified as Chad “Charpo” Joseph (26) and Samaroo, report that they were killed in the most recent US airstrike against a vessel allegedly linked to drug trafficking in Caribbean waters.

EE.UU. asesinó a dos ciudadanos de Trinidad y Togabo en aguas del Caribe Familiares de dos ciudadanos de Trinidad y Tobago, identificados como Chad “Charpo” Joseph (26) y Samaroo, denuncian que fueron asesinados en el más reciente ataque aéreo de Estados Unidos contra una embarcación presuntamente vinculada al narcotráfico en aguas del Caribe.

Trinidadian citizens Chad “Charpo” Joseph and Rishi Samaroo were reportedly among those killed in a US airstrike in the Caribbean on Tuesday. (Alba Ciudad)Mexico City, Mexico, October 16, 2025 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The Donald Trump administration is facing international scrutiny after a US airstrike on an alleged drug smuggling ship in the Caribbean reportedly killed two men from Trinidad and Tobago, making the third nationality to fall victim to the US bombing campaign.While there has been no official confirmation, local media reported that Trinidadian citizens named Chad “Charpo” Joseph and Rishi Samaroo were among those killed during Tuesday’s strike.The two men from Trinidad and Tobago were among six victims of a US airstrike that destroyed a boat off the coast of Venezuela on Tuesday. Trump said the strike, the fifth confirmed hit since the bombing campaign began in September, was targeting a vessel carrying drugs but did not offer any proof. Families of the victims said the men were fishermen, not smugglers. Trinidadian outlet CNC3TV spoke to Joseph’s grandmother, Christine Clement, who said that he had been trying to return home after a 3-month stay in nearby Venezuela, but had failed in his efforts.Clement’s testimony lends credence to the allegations that US forces do not have solid intelligence and are instead targeting boats used for fishing or other activities. The first strike killed 11 people on board, which first raised doubts that it was a drug trafficking boat after experts pointed out the “go fast” boats used to smuggle drugs in the Caribbean usually have smaller crews. The killings of the Trinidadian nationals follows news that at least one strike targeted Colombian nationals on a boat that had left from Colombia. Colombian President Gustavo Petro has strongly condemned the US strikes, calling for criminal investigations into Trump and other administration officials involved. Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, has openly supported the US bombing campaign in the region, declaring she has “no sympathy for traffickers” and that “the US military should kill them all violently.”Persad-Bissessar, who took office following a campaign in April promising a hardline approach to crime, made the comments before this latest strike that claimed the lives of two men from Trinidad and Tobago. She has not commented on the latest developments.Joseph’s mother, Lenore Burnley, told local media that the killing of her son was “wrong and cruel.” Relatives quoted in local media questioned why the boat was not intercepted if there were narcotics smuggling suspicions.The US bombing campaign, which experts have called a violation of international law, has made fishermen in the targeted area fearful for their lives. Trump has openly mocked them and the risks they face as a result of US military activity. Gary Aboud, secretary of Fishermen and Friends of the Sea, has recommended Trinidadian fishermen to not stray more than half a mile from the coast to avoid a potential US strike.Venezuela is separated from Trinidad and Tobago by the Gulf of Paria, a narrow body of water about 11 kilometers at its narrowest point.Since mid-August, the White House has stationed at least eight warships, aircraft, and an estimated 10,000 troops in the Caribbean in a purported mission against drug smuggling. The US bombing campaign has killed a total of 27 people since September. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accused the US of seeking to oust his government from power, while analysts claim the true aim of the US anti-narcotics campaign is to put pressure on Maduro to resign. The Trump administration produced a classified legal opinion that justifies lethal strikes against a secret and expansive list of alleged cartels and drug traffickers. The Center for Constitutional Rights and the American Civil Liberties Union submitted a Freedom of Information Act request Wednesday seeking the Office of Legal Counsel’s guidance and related documents on Trump’s lethal strikes against suspected drug-smuggling operations in the Caribbean.The White House recently authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to carry out lethal covert operations in Venezuela as part of escalating regime-change efforts against Caracas. Trump himself said he would ramp up the bombing campaign and begin striking targets on land. Maduro has called for dialogue but Washington shut the door to the possibility, suspending all diplomatic contact with Caracas on October 2.Venezuela called an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council to discuss US military threats in the Caribbean. Caracas received strong support from geopolitical allies China and Russia but no resolutions were proposed nor approved. Venezuela’s Representative to the United Nations Samuel Moncada followed up by formally asking the Security Council to determine that the “extrajudicial executions” being carried out by the US in the Caribbean are illegal and to issue a statement backing the country’s sovereignty.Edited by Ricardo Vaz in Caracas.

Relatives of two men from Trinidad believed to have been killed in a US military strike on a boat in the Caribbean have accused Donald Trump of “killing poor people” without due process and are demanding justice.Chad “Charpo” Joseph and Rishi Samaroo, from the fishing village of Las Cuevas in northern Trinidad, are thought to be among six people killed in a US airstrike on a boat allegedly transporting drugs from Venezuela.Trump has described the six killed as “narcoterrorists”, claiming that “intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking narcotics”. But speaking to the Guardian at a wake for the two men, Joseph’s cousin La Toya, 42, said he was denied the basic right to due process and accused the Trinidad and Tobago government of giving up its sovereignty to the US.“Everybody have a right to due process and due process wasn’t given. It don’t look like we running under our government no more when it comes to the waters – that’s not Trinidad waters,” she said, questioning why US officials decided to destroy the boat rather than detain and question its occupants.At a wake for the two men late on Thursday, family and community members said they felt betrayed by their own government and at the mercy of a Trump administration that has been given unfettered access to their waters.“I just want to know why Donald Trump killing poor people just so,” Joseph’s uncle, known only as “Dollars”, said. “Just because he going after the people gas and their oil. He going after people riches and killing poor people children.”Messiah Burnley, a cousin of Chad Joseph, sits outside the home Joseph shared with his grandparents in Las Cuevas, Trinidad and Tobago. Photograph: Andrea de Silva/ReutersLynette Burnley, Joseph’s aunt, said the family had received no communication from the Trinidad government since reports of her nephew’s death first emerged.“That make me feel a kind of way too,” Burnley said. “People coming from international, all over, [calling us but] not right here in Trinidad. They real poor, they let us down.”On Thursday, Trinidad’s prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who has previously expressed strong support for a US military operation in the region, avoided questions from reporters about the US airstrike that is thought to have killed Joseph and Samaroo.“Just imagine, the prime minister … They asking she about this. She never even make a statement,” Burnley said, adding that it felt as if Joseph and Samaroo were being treated like “they did not exist”.Joseph’s grandmother Christine Clement said she was very close to him. He moved from his mother’s home in another fishing village, Matelot, and came to live with her.She said the only support she had had was from the community.“Everybody hurt, because in this community everybody is family and friends and everybody close … Our own police service, nobody come and ask a question. There’s no investigation, nothing,” she said, adding she was trying to stay calm and monitor her blood pressure.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionBoats are anchored in the bay from where Chad Joseph and another man departed for Venezuela in Las Cuevas. Photograph: Andrea de Silva/ReutersLess is known in the village about Samaroo, who was released from prison in 2021 after serving time for his role in a 2009 murder of a street vendor. Most only knew him by his last name and said he would often try to help out in any way he could with odd jobs and mechanics, but especially animals.With no body to bury, family and friends are planning a memorial mass. “I talked to the priest and I let him know what went on,” Burnley said. “Next week Wednesday will be the nine days. He coming home here to keep a mass, five o’clock.”On Thursday, US media reported another strike on a boat in the Caribbean, from which there reportedly are survivors. At least 27 people have been killed in previous attacks off the coast of Venezuela, which the Trump administration says are necessary to protect the United States from narcotics smuggled from Venezuela, but which UN experts and human rights groups have described as extrajudicial killings.Last month, fishers in Las Cuevas told the Guardian that they were afraid of being caught in the crossfire amid Trump’s “war on drugs” in the region. Instead of their usual route, heading west toward Venezuela, fishers said they now head east, staying close to the coast of Trinidad. On Thursday, villagers told the Guardian that the fishers now don’t want to go out at all.Cornell Clement, the grandfather of Chad Joseph. Photograph: Kejan HaynesActivist David Abdulah, speaking for the regional executive committee for the Assembly of Caribbean People, stood outside the US embassy in Port of Spain on Thursday declaring that the Caribbean must remain a “zone of peace”.Alluding to Washington’s history of interference in Haiti and Latin America, and its invasion of the Caribbean island of Grenada in 1983, Abdulah warned that there was an imminent threat to the region’s sovereignty and peace.Launching a regional declaration condemning renewed US militarisation, he said: “The people of the Caribbean must stand firm against any attempt to drag us into war.”Juanita Goebertus Estrada, Americas director at Human Rights Watch said the attacks violated international human rights law and amounted to extrajudicial executions. “The US is not engaged in an armed conflict with Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago or with alleged criminal groups involved. Under human rights law standards, officials engaging in law enforcement must seek to minimize injury and preserve human life. They may use lethal force only when strictly unavoidable to protect against an imminent threat of death or serious injury. ”In the different recent strikes conducted in the Caribbean, the US authorities made no effort to minimize harm and have not sought to demonstrate that the individuals aboard vessels posed any imminent threat to life,” she said.

JENSEN LA VENDESe­nior Re­porterjensen.lavende@guardian.co.ttThe moth­er of Chad “Char­po” Joseph, one of two lo­cal men killed in a US airstrike sup­pos­ed­ly tar­get­ing nar­co-traf­fick­ers, says she is putting the Gov­ern­ment in God’s hands.Her son and an­oth­er man, iden­ti­fied as Richie Sama­roo, were killed in the fifth airstrike last Tues­day. Gov­ern­ment of­fi­cials, in­clud­ing Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar, re­it­er­at­ed the coun­try’s sup­port for the at­tacks, which many have de­scribed as ex­tra­ju­di­cial killings.In a state­ment on Sun­day, the Min­istry of For­eign and Cari­com Af­fairs af­firmed that the US op­er­a­tions were not in­tend­ed to tar­get law-abid­ing peo­ple, in­clud­ing fish­er­folk and oth­er sea­far­ers try­ing to earn an hon­est liv­ing.The min­istry al­so re­ferred to a re­cent re­lease from the Caribbean Com­mu­ni­ty (Cari­com), stat­ing that the US op­er­a­tions—sup­pos­ed­ly aimed at com­bat­ing nar­co- and hu­man traf­fick­ing and oth­er forms of transna­tion­al crime—are ul­ti­mate­ly in­tend­ed to al­low the re­gion to be­come a true “Zone of Peace.”The US con­duct­ed its first airstrike on Sep­tem­ber 2 in the south­ern Caribbean, af­ter de­ploy­ing sev­er­al naval ships to the re­gion. So far, 32 peo­ple have been killed in sev­en lethal at­tacks by the US, which aims to dis­man­tle drug-traf­fick­ing net­works. The Gov­ern­ment has backed the US ac­tion, with Per­sad-Bisses­sar re­port­ed­ly urg­ing the US to deal with sus­pect­ed drug smug­glers “vi­o­lent­ly.”When asked about the Gov­ern­ment’s stance, Burn­ley said: “I am leav­ing them in God’s hands. I not think­ing too much nah!”She added that, while she does not want to be­lieve her son was killed, she is as­sured that if he were alive, he would have con­tact­ed the fam­i­ly by now. She said she was in­formed of his death through phone calls from those who knew him.Burn­ley al­so spoke about a pho­to­graph of her son cir­cu­lat­ing on so­cial me­dia, show­ing Joseph and two oth­ers be­ing ar­rest­ed. She said he was not held for traf­fick­ing nar­cotics, but for am­mu­ni­tion, and that the mat­ter is still on­go­ing.Rel­a­tives said Joseph worked as a fish­er­man.The moth­er said a memo­r­i­al ser­vice for Joseph will be held at his grand­moth­er’s res­i­dence on Wednes­day evening.

JENSEN LA VENDE Se­nior Re­porterjensen.lavende@guardian.co.ttAt­tor­neys rep­re­sent­ing two men be­lieved to have been killed in a US strike on a boat in the south­ern Caribbean are re­quest­ing in­for­ma­tion from the State in re­la­tion to the in­ci­dent, which in­cludes de­tails from the Cen­tral In­tel­li­gence Agency (CIA) and Drug En­force­ment Agency (DEA).  They al­so want the par­tic­u­lars of Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar’s meet­ing with the US Sec­re­tary of State Mar­co Ru­bio in Sep­tem­ber.In a 17-page let­ter, at­tor­ney Keron Ramkhal­whan, who is rep­re­sent­ing blog­ger and so­cial ac­tivist Vishal Per­sad, wrote to Per­sad-Bisses­sar, Po­lice Com­mis­sion­er Al­lis­ter Gue­var­ro, and For­eign Af­fairs Min­is­ter Sean Sobers, re­quest­ing in­for­ma­tion on eight items.  The in­for­ma­tion be­ing re­quest­ed are: copies of all le­gal opin­ions pro­vid­ed to the three rel­a­tives on the mil­i­tary strikes in the Caribbean; copies of all min­utes and/or records of the meet­ing held on Sep­tem­ber 30 be­tween the Prime Min­is­ter and US Sec­re­tary of State; copies of all min­utes and/or records of any meet­ing held be­tween Per­sad-Bisses­sar and Ru­bio on No­vem­ber 3; copies of all re­ports re­ceived from the Unit­ed Sates Gov­ern­ment rel­a­tive to the mil­i­tary strikes in the Caribbean that be­gan on Sep­tem­ber 2; the lo­ca­tion/co­or­di­nates (lon­gi­tude and lat­i­tude) of the mil­i­tary strike that oc­curred on Oc­to­ber 14; the names of all peo­ple killed in the mil­i­tary strikes; records of whether in­di­vid­u­als as­signed to the CIA and DEA are cur­rent­ly op­er­at­ing (con­duct­ing in­tel­li­gence gath­er­ing op­er­a­tions or crim­i­nal in­ves­ti­ga­tions) in the coun­try and un­der whose au­thor­i­ty. Ramkhal­whan gave the three of­fi­cials un­til De­cem­ber 4 to re­spond to the re­quest in keep­ing with Sec­tion 15 of the FOIA, which man­dates a de­ci­sion with­in 30 days of sub­mis­sion. On Oc­to­ber 30, Sobers con­firmed that au­thor­i­ties ob­tained the co­or­di­nates of Unit­ed States mil­i­tary op­er­a­tions in the Caribbean, which ver­i­fy that the strikes oc­curred in in­ter­na­tion­al wa­ters—out­side T&T’s Ex­clu­sive Eco­nom­ic Zone (EEZ). How­ev­er, he did not say whether the co­or­di­nates in­clude the lo­ca­tion of the Oc­to­ber 14 blast be­lieved to have killed two Trinida­di­ans—Chad “Char­po” Joseph and Rishi Sama­roo. Sama­roo, 41, was a fa­ther of three boys. Joseph, 26, was a fish­er­man ac­cord­ing to rel­a­tives. The men were sup­pos­ed­ly re­turn­ing to Trinidad from Venezuela when they were killed.  Sobers said the Gov­ern­ment had no in­for­ma­tion that the two were killed in the US strike and ad­vised the rel­a­tives of the men to file miss­ing per­sons re­ports with the po­lice. Rel­a­tives did so when they vis­it­ed the po­lice last week­end. On Sep­tem­ber 2, the US be­gan an an­ti-drug traf­fick­ing cam­paign where sev­er­al ves­sels were tar­get­ed in ki­net­ic airstrikes. The dead­ly strikes have been la­belled as ex­tra­ju­di­cial killings by some, in­clud­ing the New York City Bar As­so­ci­a­tion, ac­cord­ing to the at­tor­ney.  Since the in­ci­dents, Prime Min­is­ter Per­sad-Bisses­sar has open­ly sup­port­ed the strikes, say­ing a day af­ter the first one that the US should kill the drug traf­fick­ers vi­o­lent­ly. Even with the sus­pect­ed deaths of the two na­tion­als, Per­sad-Bisses­sar re­mains res­olute in her sup­port. In his pre­am­ble to the re­quest, Ramkhal­whan stat­ed that the pur­pose of the FOIA re­quest is to fa­cil­i­tate Per­sad’s lat­est ini­tia­tive, ti­tled Mil­i­tary Strikes in the Caribbean 2025, which he in­tends to pub­lish. He said this seeks to pro­mote trans­paren­cy and ac­count­abil­i­ty re­gard­ing the lethal force used by the US mil­i­tary and the T&T Gov­ern­ment’s re­sponse. “The FOIA ap­pli­cant be­lieves the state­ments of the Ho­n­ourable Prime Min­is­ter re­flect a trou­bling na­tion­al ethos, one that now ap­pears to tol­er­ate, and even en­cour­age, the tak­ing of life in the name of or­der. This is the lazy pos­ture of a Gov­ern­ment that has lost faith in the rule of law and the in­sti­tu­tions of jus­tice. First came the de­c­la­ra­tion of a State of Emer­gency; then an ex­po­nen­tial rise in po­lice killings, a Com­mis­sion­er of Po­lice adorn­ing the Pun­ish­er sym­bol to glo­ri­fy vengeance rather than jus­tice, and now, an open en­dorse­ment to kill/ex­e­cute per­sons on the high seas/in­ter­na­tion­al wa­ters.” Rel­a­tives of both men, through their at­tor­ney, said they sup­port the in­for­ma­tion re­quest. They said the Gov­ern­ment ought to pro­vide the de­tails of where these strikes are oc­cur­ring and what­ev­er re­ports were sent to the Per­sad-Bisses­sar ad­min­is­tra­tion about the strikes. “We need some con­fir­ma­tion as to the iden­ti­ties of the per­sons who were killed on the 14th Oc­to­ber 2025! Isn’t it right that the per­sons who are killing must know who they are killing?”

8m US troops are massing in the Caribbean on President Trump’s orders. From strikes on boats killing 83 people, to declaring Venezuela’s leader a narco terrorist, Mr Trump heralded his ramped up war on drugs in an executive order, signed on day one of his presidency. We’re in Trinidad to look at how the island ended up on the frontline of the US president’s war against Venezuela. Credit: US Editor: Anushka Asthana Cameraman: Ben Martin Video editor: Chris Shlemon Producers: Gracie Jerome & Mark Bassant Topics Caribbean, Trump, Venezuela, World, trinidad Image credit Channel 4 News

GÜIRIA, Venezuela (AP) — One was a fisherman struggling to eke out a living on $100 a month. Another was a career criminal. A third was a former military cadet. And a fourth was a down-on-his-luck bus driver. The men had little in common beyond their Venezuelan seaside hometowns and the fact all four were among the more than 60 people killed since early September when the U.S. military began attacking boats that the Trump administration alleges were smuggling drugs. President Donald Trump and top U.S. officials have alleged the craft were being operated by narco-terrorists and cartel members bound with deadly drugs for American communities. One mother describes the “confusion and anguish” of losing her son, who is believed to have been killed in one of the boats targeted by the U.S. military. (AP video Juan Arraez) The Associated Press learned the identities of four of the men – and pieced together details about at least five others – who were slain, providing the first detailed account of those who died in the strikes. In dozens of interviews in villages on Venezuela’s breathtaking northeastern coast, from which some of the boats departed, residents and relatives said the dead men had indeed been running drugs but were not narco-terrorists or leaders of a cartel or gang. Most of the nine men were crewing such craft for the first or second time, making at least $500 per trip, residents and relatives said. They were laborers, a fisherman, a motorcycle taxi driver. Two were low-level career criminals. One was a well-known local crime boss who contracted out his smuggling services to traffickers. The men lived on the Paria Peninsula, in mostly unpainted cinderblock homes that can go weeks without water service and regularly lose power for several hours a day. They awoke to panoramic views of a national park’s tropical forests, the Gulf of Paria’s shallows and the Caribbean’s sparkling sapphire waters. When the time came for their drug runs, they boarded open-hulled fishing skiffs that relied on powerful outboard motors to haul their drugs to nearby Trinidad and other islands. The residents and relatives interviewed by the AP requested anonymity out of fear of reprisals from drug smugglers, the Venezuelan government or the Trump administration. They said they were incensed that the men were killed without due process. In the past, their boats would have been interdicted by the U.S. authorities and the crewmen charged with federal crimes, affording them a day in court. The U.S. government “should have stopped them,” a man’s relative said.It has been difficult for relatives to learn much about their dead loved ones because criminal gangs and the Venezuelan government have long repressed the flow of information in the region. Venezuelan officials have blasted the U.S. government over the strikes, and the nation’s ambassador to the U.N. called the attacks “extrajudicial executions.” They have also steadfastly denied that drug traffickers operate in the country and have yet to acknowledge that any of its citizens have been killed in boat strikes. Spokespeople for Venezuela’s government did not respond to a request for comment.The Trump administration has justified the strikes by declaring drug cartels to be “ unlawful combatants ” and said the U.S. is now in an “armed conflict” with them. Trump has said each sunken boat has saved 25,000 American lives, presumably from overdoses. The boats, however, appear to have been transporting cocaine, not the far more deadly synthetic opioids that kill tens of thousands of Americans each year. Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, said in a statement to the AP that the Defense Department has “consistently said that our intelligence did indeed confirm that the individuals involved in these drug operations were narco-terrorists, and we stand by that assessment.”So far, the U.S. military has blown up 17 vessels, killing more than 60 people. Nine of the craft were targeted in the Caribbean, and at least three of those had departed from Venezuela, according to the Trump administration. The military is striking the boats at the same time the administration is applying increasing pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The Justice Department doubled a reward for his arrest to $50 million, and the U.S. military has built up an unusually large force in the Caribbean Sea and the waters off Venezuela and has flown pairs of supersonic, heavy bombers along the country’s coast. Relatives and acquaintances said they have confirmed the deaths through word-of-mouth and inexplicit social media posts that sought to convey information about the dead men without drawing the attention of Venezuelan authorities. They have also made what they described as reasonable deductions: The men have not returned phone calls or texts in weeks, or reached out to say they were OK; Venezuelan authorities, residents said, have also searched some of the homes of the dead men. “I want an answer, but who can I ask?” said a relative of one of the men. “I can’t say anything.”The fisherman (AP Illustration / Peter Hamlin) A native of Güiria, a village on the southeast side of the peninsula, Robert Sánchez dropped out of school as a teenager and like many others in the region became a fisherman like his father, according to friends and relatives. The 42-year-old was considered among the peninsula’s best pilots, they said, having spent the better part of three decades mastering the area’s currents and winds, so much so he could navigate the waters at night without instruments. As part of hired crews, the father of four spent his days fishing for snapper, kingfish and dogfish. The fisherman wanted to save enough money to buy a 75-horsepower boat engine so he could operate his own boat and not work for others. It was a dream Sánchez knew he was likely to never realize, relatives said: Most of his income — about $100 a month — went to feed his children.He was not alone in that situation. The peninsula is part of Sucre state, one of Venezuela’s poorest. Sucre was once home to several fish processing plants, an auto assembly plant and a large public university, all of which offered well-paying jobs. Most have shuttered. The peninsula is dotted by the unfulfilled promises of 26 years of a self-described socialist government, including an abandoned shipyard and the rusted infrastructure meant for a natural gas complex. With its proximity to the Caribbean Sea, the area is a popular transit hub for cocaine making its way from Colombia to Trinidad and other Caribbean islands before heading to Europe. Colombian cocaine destined for the U.S. is generally smuggled out of Colombia through the Pacific coast. The larger economic pressures — and Sánchez’s goal of owning a boat engine — are what pushed the fisherman to accept an offer to help traffickers navigate the tricky waters he knew so well, friends and relatives said. Sánchez had just finished offloading a day’s catch last month when he told his mother he would be taking a short trip and would see her in a couple of days. They had no idea where he was going. After seeing clips on social media that mentioned his death, relatives broke the news to his mother, but not until after ensuring she had taken her blood pressure medication. Sánchez’s youngest son, a third grader, could not accept for days that his father was gone. He kept asking adults if his father could have survived the explosion, noting he might still be at sea.No, the adults told the boy. His father was gone. One of the first to die (AP Illustration / Peter Hamlin) Luis “Che” Martínez was killed in the first strike. A burly 60-year-old, Martínez was a longtime local crime boss, and he made most of his living smuggling drugs and people across borders, according to several people who knew him. He had been jailed by Venezuelan authorities on human-trafficking charges after a boat he had operated capsized in December 2020, killing about two dozen people, law enforcement officials said at the time. Among those who died in the accident were two of his sons and a granddaughter, relatives told the AP. The AP was not able to determine the disposition of his criminal case, but Martínez was eventually released from custody and returned to smuggling people and drugs, according to acquaintances. Though they detested what he did for a living — and the control Martínez and similar criminals exerted over their villages — several residents said they appreciated how Martínez contributed annually to the town’s festival of the Virgin of the Valley, the patroness of fishermen, and he spent lavishly in local shops and restaurants. He also bet heavily on cockfights, a popular pastime, a bird breeder said. Martínez was killed, a relative and several acquaintances said, in the first known U.S. strike, which took place Sept. 2. Trump quickly took to social media to claim the vessel had departed from Venezuela and had been carrying drugs. The 11-man crew, the president said, had been members of the Tren de Aragua gang. He said all of the men were killed and also posted a short video clip of a small vessel appearing to explode in flames.Martínez’s relatives said they did not believe the underworld figure was a member of that gang. They said they have been provided no information from the Venezuelan government about his fate. They figured it out when they came across a photo of a body that had washed ashore in Trinidad. The photo had been shared on social media and messaging apps and depicted a badly mutilated body. The people familiar with Martínez said they knew instantly the stout corpse was Martínez because, on his left wrist, was strapped one of his most treasured belongings: an ostentatious watch. The former cadet and bus driver (AP Illustration / Peter Hamlin) Dushak Milovcic, 24, was drawn to crime by the adrenaline rush and money, so much that he dropped out of the country’s National Guard Academy, according to those who knew him. He started as a lookout for smugglers, they said. Though he had no experience at sea, he eventually won a promotion to the more lucrative and coveted jobs on drug-running boats.It’s not clear how many trips he had undertaken before he was killed last month. Juan Carlos “El Guaramero” Fuentes had operated a transit bus for several years but was facing dire financial circumstances when it had broken down. The government had been unable — or unwilling — to fix it. That meant he was losing money because bus drivers in Venezuela typically pocket a portion of the fares, making it nearly impossible for him to feed and clothe his family. (AP Illustration / Peter Hamlin) Villagers said they were not surprised that Fuentes, who had no nautical experience, turned to smuggling to make ends meet. The higher-level traffickers who typically crewed such boats had been staying ashore to avoid being targeted by U.S. missiles. In their place, villagers said, they had been increasingly hiring novices like Fuentes. Fuentes told friends he had been nervous about his first smuggling run, knowing it would be filled with risks from weather, rival gangs, even the U.S. military. The September trip had gone surprisingly smoothly, he told friends, and he readily agreed to join another crew. Fuentes was killed in a missile strike last month, friends said, the precise one unknown. Dotted Line with Center Square —-Konstantin Toropin contributed from Washington.—This story was supported by funding from the Walton Family Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.—-Contact the AP’s global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or https://www.ap.org/tips/

Rel­a­tives of miss­ing fish­er­man Chad Joseph are dis­put­ing claims by At­tor­ney Gen­er­al John Je­re­mie and For­eign Af­fairs Min­is­ter Sean Sobers that no Trinidad and To­ba­go na­tion­al was killed dur­ing a re­cent US op­er­a­tion in Caribbean wa­ters.In a Fi­nan­cial Times re­port on No­vem­ber 13, Je­re­mie stat­ed that no lo­cal fish­er­man had been killed. Sobers lat­er re­peat­ed this po­si­tion at a me­dia con­fer­ence.But Joseph’s fam­i­ly in­sists they have heard noth­ing to con­firm he is alive.Dur­ing a vis­it to the fam­i­ly’s Las Cuevas Vil­lage home, Joseph’s grand­moth­er, Chris­tine Clement, dis­missed the min­is­ters’ state­ments. She said the fam­i­ly con­tin­ues to hope, but ev­i­dence sug­gests oth­er­wise.“No­body ever came and told us any­thing. I wish they were alive. We are pray­ing every day that they are alive,” Clement said. “But if he was alive or in cus­tody some­where, he would have reached out to us by now.”Yes­ter­day marked 40 days since the fam­i­ly be­lieves Joseph, 26, died. Rel­a­tives held a memo­r­i­al ser­vice in his ho­n­our. They be­lieve he was killed in an at­tack on a ves­sel off Venezuela on Oc­to­ber 16. Joseph had re­port­ed­ly been strand­ed in Venezuela for sev­er­al months be­fore the in­ci­dent.An­oth­er fish­er­man, Rishi Sama­roo, is al­so be­lieved to have died in the same op­er­a­tion, which US au­thor­i­ties de­scribed as part of ef­forts to com­bat nar­co-traf­fick­ing.Asked whether she ac­cept­ed the gov­ern­ment’s po­si­tion, Clement replied, “I don’t know what to say about that. I would be glad to know if it’s so. But I say if any­thing, he would have got­ten in con­tact with his moth­er.”Both fam­i­lies filed miss­ing per­sons re­ports on the ad­vice of gov­ern­ment of­fi­cials.

BOSTON, MA – Today, family members of two Trinidadian men killed in a U.S. missile strike in October are suing the U.S. government for wrongful death and extrajudicial killing. Chad Joseph, 26, and Rishi Samaroo, 41, were killed in one of the 36 strikes the Trump administration has launched against civilian boats in the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean. At least 125 people have been killed in these strikes since September 2025. On October 14, Mr. Joseph and Mr. Samaroo were returning from Venezuela to their homes in Las Cuevas, Trinidad and Tobago when a missile struck their boat. Four other people also died in the strike. The plaintiffs are Lenore Burnley, Mr. Joseph’s mother, and Sallycar Korasingh, Mr. Samaroo’s sister. They bring this case on behalf of surviving members of Mr. Joseph’s and Mr. Samaroo’s families. “Chad was a loving and caring son who was always there for me, for his wife and children, and for our whole family. I miss him terribly. We all do,” said Mr. Joseph’s mother, Lenore Burnley. “We know this lawsuit won’t bring Chad back to us, but we’re trusting God to carry us through this, and we hope that speaking out will help get us some truth and closure.” They bring their claims under two federal statutes: the Death on the High Seas Act, a law that allows family members to sue for wrongful deaths occurring on the high seas, and the Alien Tort Statute, which allows foreign citizens to sue in U.S. federal courts for violations of well-recognized human rights norms. “Rishi used to call our family almost every day, and then one day he disappeared, and we never heard from him again,” said Sallycar Korasingh, Rishi Samaroo’s sister. “Rishi was a hardworking man who paid his debt to society and was just trying to get back on his feet again and to make a decent living in Venezuela to help provide for his family. If the U.S. government believed Rishi had done anything wrong, it should have arrested, charged, and detained him, not murdered him. They must be held accountable.” In the complaint filed today, lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union, the Center for Constitutional Rights, Professor Jonathan Hafetz of Seton Hall Law School, and the ACLU of Massachusetts detail why the boat strikes are “manifestly unlawful.” The U.S. is not engaged in an armed conflict, as the government has implausibly claimed, and even during wartime, these strikes would still be illegal under the laws of war, which constrain the indiscriminate and direct use of force against civilians and civilian vessels. “The Trump administration’s boat strikes are the heinous acts of people who claim they can abuse their power with impunity around the world,” said Brett Max Kaufman, senior counsel at the ACLU. “In seeking justice for the senseless killing of their loved ones, our clients are bravely demanding accountability for their devastating losses and standing up against the administration’s assault on the rule of law.” President Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth have publicly boasted about and published videos of the strikes — including the strike that killed Mr. Joseph and Mr. Samaroo. However, the strikes’ victims have remained largely anonymous, seen only as specks on a screen. The Trinidadian Foreign Minister Sean Sobers told a local news outlet after the strike that “the government has no information linking Joseph or Samaroo to illegal activities.” “It is absurd and dangerous for any state to just unilaterally proclaim that a ‘war’ exists in order to deploy lethal military force,” said Baher Azmy, legal director of the Center for Constitutional Rights. “These are lawless killings in cold blood; killings for sport and killings for theater, which is why we need a court of law to proclaim what is true and constrain what is lawless. This is a critical step in ensuring accountability, while the individuals responsible may ultimately be answerable criminally for murder and war crimes.” Prior to his murder, Mr. Joseph lived with his wife and their three children in Las Cuevas, Trinidad. To support his family, he often traveled to Venezuela to fish and for farmwork. On October 12, he called his wife to let her know that he had found a boat ride home from Venezuela and would see her in a couple of days. On October 14, his wife and Ms. Burnley saw social media reports of a boat strike; fearing that the boat was his, they repeatedly called him, but got no reply. His family has not heard from him since. Mr. Samaroo was born in El Soccorro, Trinidad, where his elderly father, eight younger siblings, and two of his three sons still reside. His elderly mother lives nearby in San Juan. In 2024, he was released early on parole after serving a 15-year sentence for his participation in a homicide. Following his release, Mr. Samaroo moved to Las Cuevas, where he fished and worked in construction to support himself and his family. In August 2025, he let his family know that he was working on a farm in Venezuela, taking care of goats and cows and making cheese. He would call his family almost every day when he was in Venezuela, and in an Oct. 12 call with Ms. Korasingh, he told her he was returning home to Trinidad and would see her in a few days because their mother had fallen ill, and he wanted to help take care of her. That was the last time Ms. Korasingh or anyone else in the family heard from him. “Using military force to kill Chad and Rishi violates the most elementary principles of international law,” said Jonathan Hafetz, a Professor at Seton Hall Law School. “People may not simply be gunned down by the government, and the Trump administration’s claims to the contrary risk making America a pariah state.” Because non-citizens may bring admiralty claims in any federal court, the lawsuit was filed in Massachusetts, where the federal bench has a long history of deciding admiralty cases.“The administration's lethal boat strikes violate our collective understanding of right and wrong,” said Jessie Rossman, legal director of the ACLU of Massachusetts. “Rishi and Chad wanted only to get home safely to their loved ones; the unconscionable attack on their boat prevented them from doing so. It is imperative that we hold this administration accountable, both for their families and for the rule of law itself.”

On October 14, 2025, the United States government authorized and launched a missile strike that killed Chad Joseph and Rishi Samaroo, two Trinidadian men who were traveling by boat from Venezuela to their homes in Trinidad and Tobago. Before the United States killed him, Mr. Joseph lived with his wife and their three children in Las Cuevas, Trinidad. To support his family, he often traveled to Venezuela to fish and for farmwork. On October 12, he called his wife to let her know that he had found a boat ride home from Venezuela and would see her in a couple of days. On October 14, his wife and mother saw social media reports of a boat strike; fearing that the boat was his, they repeatedly called him but got no reply. His family has not heard from him since. Like Mr. Joseph, Mr. Samaroo was working on a farm in Venezuela in the weeks before his death, taking care of goats and cows and making cheese. In an October 12 call with his sister, he told her he was returning home to Trinidad and would see her in a few days because their mother had fallen ill, and he wanted to help take care of her. That was the last time Ms. Korasingh or anyone else in the family heard from him. The October 14 attack that killed Mr. Joseph and Mr. Samaroo was part of an unprecedented and manifestly unlawful U.S. military campaign of lethal strikes against small boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean. These premeditated and intentional killings—carried out outside of the context of armed conflict and in circumstances where targeted individuals do not pose a concrete, specific, and immediate threat of grave harm—violate domestic law prohibiting murder and international law prohibiting extrajudicial killing, or the arbitrary or unlawful deprivation of the right to life. Through this lawsuit, Plaintiffs Lenore Burnley, Mr. Joseph’s mother, and Sallycar Korasingh, Mr. Samaroo’s sister, are demanding accountability for their loved ones’ deaths. Their lawsuit asserts claims under two federal statutes that entitle Mr. Joseph’s and Mr. Samaroo’s survivors to compensation and redress: the Death on the High Seas Act, which establishes a cause of action for wrongful deaths occurring on the high seas, and the Alien Tort Statute, which permits non-citizens to bring suit in U.S. courts for violations of international law, including the prohibition on extrajudicial killing.

Nestled in the northeastern coast of Trinidad, pillowed by verdant vegetation on land and blanketed by the surf of the Caribbean Sea, is the coastal community of Matelot. On land, it’s accessible by a single, winding road flanked by forest on one side and coastline vistas on the other. Matelot, the French word for sailor, like most communities along the coast, can also be accessed by boat from the sea. Long ago, goods came to the community from “steamers” and landed by the river mouth, Shark River. And it’s from the sea that most of the villagers derive their livelihood. It’s the community, where heritage runs deep in the shoreline and life and lifestyle are linked to the sea, that Chad ‘Chapo’ Joseph, 26, grew up in before he was allegedly killed in a US airstrike on October 14. Last Sunday, it would have been two months since Joseph died, his mother, Lenore Joseph, told Guardian Media. Outside her bricked, one-storey home, is a banner which marks his sunrise and sunset dates, which has been there since October 22, when a memorial to mark his life was held. In Matelot, there is one high school, one primary school, a private bus which charges $30 one way to Sangre Grande, and a few parlours that service the 300-plus members of the community. Signs of progress, like its Outreach Centre, are as visible as its decay, like its dilapidated wooden homes. A boy who started fishing In this place, somewhat frozen in stories of the people who live there, it was easy to chart Joseph’s story in the community, as most people remember him as a boy who started fishing early after he finished school at Matelot Secondary. He has several uncles and his mother and several siblings–he has five in total–who also stay in Matelot. Most boys in the village, his uncle said, grew up to be fishermen and either stayed in the community or left because of a lack of opportunities. In Joseph’s case, when he was older, he went to stay with his aunt, Lynette Burnley, and relatives in Las Cuevas. Gaston Graham, a bar owner in the village, said he remembered Joseph as a boy being out at sea. Historically, Graham explained, the communities of Las Cuevas, Blanchisseuse and Matelot were connected as remote communities in the country. As a result, most families in the communities were connected. And in these coastal communities, it was easier to get to Venezuela than to south Trinidad. For the village, the connection to Venezuela is not geographically bound. Graham said a lot of Joseph’s family belonged to the Salvary family, which used to own acres of land in Matelot and were some of the first settlers from Venezuela in Matelot. “He has Venezuelan heritage,” he said of Joseph. “Fishing is embedded in the culture of the family. They are seafaring people,” he added. Matelot community in shock over Joseph’s alleged links to drug trafficking Graham said the news of Joseph being labelled a narco-terrorist by the US Government had shocked him and the community. “I didn’t believe it,” he told Guardian Media when the news broke. Two months on, people still find it hard to believe of him. With deaths mounting and little evidence to suggest Joseph was a narco-trafficker, opinions have formed on the US and its actions, human rights, their understanding of the law and the Prime Minister’s support for the strikes. Graham, who used to work as a seasonal farmer in Toronto, returned and retired in Matelot several years ago. From his vantage, it’s easy to identify what he termed delinquents in the community. He observed that people’s lifestyles–like having mansions as homes and several vehicles–usually indicate whether they were traffickers, and there was little in Joseph or his family’s lifestyle to openly suggest such. “I think there could have been a better method to find out what was in those boats; there was a total disregard for humanity,” he said. Following news of his death, Joseph was identified as the nephew of drug lord Vaughn “Sandman” Mieres, who was charged with being a gang leader during the 2011 state of emergency but was released for lack of evidence. “He was his nephew. But why people bringing all that up? That has nothing to do with what happened to him (Joseph),” said his aunt Lynette Burnley. Two weeks ago, Graham said villagers have heard the US drones “humming”, and in one instance, an aircraft circled a boat, but nothing happened. When Guardian Media visited last week, there was only one boat anchored to fish. The owner, Brent, who is also Joseph’s uncle, said that things in the community have been hard because of the lack of upkeep of the facilities and the changing weather patterns. A mother’s call for closure For Lenore, the daily internal struggle is palpable–the shadow of doubt that lingers because there is the lack of a body of her dead son looms large every day. Since news broke, her life has been characterised by the conflicting turmoil of having faint hope and the harsh reality of Joseph’s sudden death with no body for a burial. Joseph is her second child. She found out about his alleged death from people telling her on social media. While the family has had a memorial service for Joseph and, for the most part, believes he is dead, no one has officially confirmed it. Joseph and another Trinidadian fisherman, Rishi Samaroo, are believed dead from the same strike. Joseph’s family believe it was him because he had communicated with his common-law wife, Ayana Roberts, that he was coming home from Venezuela the night of the bombing. He died in the sea between the countries in which he lived. She said the last time she spoke with him, he told her he was happy in Venezuela, but he got tired and wanted to come back home. When asked whether he assessed the risk of leaving at that time given that it was one month into the repeated US strikes, she answered, “I believe so, and he took that risk.” When Guardian Media asked her why he took that risk, she responded, “I know about the sea law; I know since I was young. If it’s a boat, whatever, you’re supposed to stop it, see. The law is not to kill people. Wherever you are, you are not to kill people like that. This is the first time in my life, and I am 51 years old; I have never heard about this kind of stuff,” she said. On having her son labelled a narco-trafficker, she responded, “Where is the proof? If it’s drugs, where is the proof? Where is it? You understand?” It was Joseph’s family, being one of the first to identify him out of over 100 people who have lost their lives in the strikes, which shed a human light on the people who were dying as a result of the US strikes in the Caribbean Sea. The human stories started to put pressure on the Trump administration by members of Congress who called for transparency on its strikes and have tried to challenge and curtail them. Trinidad and Tobago’s Government has maintained that no T&T fisherman has been killed. On November 13, Attorney General John Jeremie told the Financial Times that no local fisherman had been killed, and that position was adopted by Foreign Affairs Minister Sean Sobers a day later. Missing persons reports have been filed by both Roberts and the Samaroo family. “It’s hard. Sunday gone was two months since that happened, and the Government here saying they might both be locked up. If they are locked up somewhere, in three days, we’re supposed to know what really going on,” Lenore said. She said her MP, Wayne Struge, has not visited the family since the news broke. “And everyone knows us. They know where to find me. You found me. It’s not a secret,” she said. Lenore, like 74 others in the community, was employed in the State’s make-work programmes–Cepep, URP and Forestry–until she lost their jobs several months ago. With no income readily available, she said she can’t stop her other children, who are also fishermen, from going out to sea. “Sometimes you can tell them, ‘Don’t go.’ How will they make their little money? Fish is fish … most people fishing and they make their money,” she said. For now, she wants closure and for the Government to take an interest in its missing citizens. Guardian Media could not get an update from government officials or from Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro on the status of these investigations or of the two decomposed bodies which washed up on the Cumana and Balandra shores in early September, believed to be linked to the strikes.

Nestled in the northeastern coast of Trinidad, pillowed by verdant vegetation on land and blanketed by the surf of the Caribbean Sea, is the coastal community of Matelot. On land, it’s accessible by a single, winding road flanked by forest on one side and coastline vistas on the other. Matelot, the French word for sailor, like most communities along the coast, can also be accessed by boat from the sea. Long ago, goods came to the community from “steamers” and landed by the river mouth, Shark River. And it’s from the sea that most of the villagers derive their livelihood. It’s the community, where heritage runs deep in the shoreline and life and lifestyle are linked to the sea, that Chad ‘Chapo’ Joseph, 26, grew up in before he was allegedly killed in a US airstrike on October 14. Last Sunday, it would have been two months since Joseph died, his mother, Lenore Joseph, told Guardian Media. Outside her bricked, one-storey home, is a banner which marks his sunrise and sunset dates, which has been there since October 22, when a memorial to mark his life was held. In Matelot, there is one high school, one primary school, a private bus which charges $30 one way to Sangre Grande, and a few parlours that service the 300-plus members of the community. Signs of progress, like its Outreach Centre, are as visible as its decay, like its dilapidated wooden homes. A boy who started fishing In this place, somewhat frozen in stories of the people who live there, it was easy to chart Joseph’s story in the community, as most people remember him as a boy who started fishing early after he finished school at Matelot Secondary. He has several uncles and his mother and several siblings–he has five in total–who also stay in Matelot. Most boys in the village, his uncle said, grew up to be fishermen and either stayed in the community or left because of a lack of opportunities. In Joseph’s case, when he was older, he went to stay with his aunt, Lynette Burnley, and relatives in Las Cuevas. Gaston Graham, a bar owner in the village, said he remembered Joseph as a boy being out at sea. Historically, Graham explained, the communities of Las Cuevas, Blanchisseuse and Matelot were connected as remote communities in the country. As a result, most families in the communities were connected. And in these coastal communities, it was easier to get to Venezuela than to south Trinidad. For the village, the connection to Venezuela is not geographically bound. Graham said a lot of Joseph’s family belonged to the Salvary family, which used to own acres of land in Matelot and were some of the first settlers from Venezuela in Matelot. “He has Venezuelan heritage,” he said of Joseph. “Fishing is embedded in the culture of the family. They are seafaring people,” he added. Matelot community in shock over Joseph’s alleged links to drug trafficking Graham said the news of Joseph being labelled a narco-terrorist by the US Government had shocked him and the community. “I didn’t believe it,” he told Guardian Media when the news broke. Two months on, people still find it hard to believe of him. With deaths mounting and little evidence to suggest Joseph was a narco-trafficker, opinions have formed on the US and its actions, human rights, their understanding of the law and the Prime Minister’s support for the strikes. Graham, who used to work as a seasonal farmer in Toronto, returned and retired in Matelot several years ago. From his vantage, it’s easy to identify what he termed delinquents in the community. He observed that people’s lifestyles–like having mansions as homes and several vehicles–usually indicate whether they were traffickers, and there was little in Joseph or his family’s lifestyle to openly suggest such. “I think there could have been a better method to find out what was in those boats; there was a total disregard for humanity,” he said. Following news of his death, Joseph was identified as the nephew of drug lord Vaughn “Sandman” Mieres, who was charged with being a gang leader during the 2011 state of emergency but was released for lack of evidence. “He was his nephew. But why people bringing all that up? That has nothing to do with what happened to him (Joseph),” said his aunt Lynette Burnley. Two weeks ago, Graham said villagers have heard the US drones “humming”, and in one instance, an aircraft circled a boat, but nothing happened. When Guardian Media visited last week, there was only one boat anchored to fish. The owner, Brent, who is also Joseph’s uncle, said that things in the community have been hard because of the lack of upkeep of the facilities and the changing weather patterns. A mother’s call for closure For Lenore, the daily internal struggle is palpable–the shadow of doubt that lingers because there is the lack of a body of her dead son looms large every day. Since news broke, her life has been characterised by the conflicting turmoil of having faint hope and the harsh reality of Joseph’s sudden death with no body for a burial. Joseph is her second child. She found out about his alleged death from people telling her on social media. While the family has had a memorial service for Joseph and, for the most part, believes he is dead, no one has officially confirmed it. Joseph and another Trinidadian fisherman, Rishi Samaroo, are believed dead from the same strike. Joseph’s family believe it was him because he had communicated with his common-law wife, Ayana Roberts, that he was coming home from Venezuela the night of the bombing. He died in the sea between the countries in which he lived. She said the last time she spoke with him, he told her he was happy in Venezuela, but he got tired and wanted to come back home. When asked whether he assessed the risk of leaving at that time given that it was one month into the repeated US strikes, she answered, “I believe so, and he took that risk.” When Guardian Media asked her why he took that risk, she responded, “I know about the sea law; I know since I was young. If it’s a boat, whatever, you’re supposed to stop it, see. The law is not to kill people. Wherever you are, you are not to kill people like that. This is the first time in my life, and I am 51 years old; I have never heard about this kind of stuff,” she said. On having her son labelled a narco-trafficker, she responded, “Where is the proof? If it’s drugs, where is the proof? Where is it? You understand?” It was Joseph’s family, being one of the first to identify him out of over 100 people who have lost their lives in the strikes, which shed a human light on the people who were dying as a result of the US strikes in the Caribbean Sea. The human stories started to put pressure on the Trump administration by members of Congress who called for transparency on its strikes and have tried to challenge and curtail them. Trinidad and Tobago’s Government has maintained that no T&T fisherman has been killed. On November 13, Attorney General John Jeremie told the Financial Times that no local fisherman had been killed, and that position was adopted by Foreign Affairs Minister Sean Sobers a day later. Missing persons reports have been filed by both Roberts and the Samaroo family. “It’s hard. Sunday gone was two months since that happened, and the Government here saying they might both be locked up. If they are locked up somewhere, in three days, we’re supposed to know what really going on,” Lenore said. She said her MP, Wayne Struge, has not visited the family since the news broke. “And everyone knows us. They know where to find me. You found me. It’s not a secret,” she said. Lenore, like 74 others in the community, was employed in the State’s make-work programmes–Cepep, URP and Forestry–until she lost their jobs several months ago. With no income readily available, she said she can’t stop her other children, who are also fishermen, from going out to sea. “Sometimes you can tell them, ‘Don’t go.’ How will they make their little money? Fish is fish … most people fishing and they make their money,” she said. For now, she wants closure and for the Government to take an interest in its missing citizens. Guardian Media could not get an update from government officials or from Commissioner of Police Allister Guevarro on the status of these investigations or of the two decomposed bodies which washed up on the Cumana and Balandra shores in early September, believed to be linked to the strikes.

“The passing of the popular Pichirilo, a great sports talent from Valdés, has been reported. Our condolences to his family,” posted @elshowderuben, a Facebook page for the program of the same name on Radio Güiria Internacional in Venezuela, on October 15, 2025. Their post received 483 reactions, mostly crying emojis or expressions of grief. “Pichirilo, you have no idea how much your news hurts, I will never forget you,” wrote a friend. “Rest in peace, Eduardo, popular Pichirilo,” “Rest in peace, my friend Pichirilo, excellent athlete. Great talent in front of the goal,” others commented. The day before, on October 14, a missile fired by the U.S. military had destroyed a boat off the Venezuelan coast near Güiria, a town in the municipality of Valdés, Sucre state, and a departure point for Trinidad and Tobago. According to the official US government video, the vessel was stationary when it was attacked. It was the fifth US attack on ships in the Caribbean. With the six people killed there, the death toll reached 27. US President Donald Trump stated on his social media that his Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, had given the order to strike on a known drug trafficking route in international waters, and that US intelligence “confirmed that the boat was trafficking narcotics” and was associated with narco-terrorist networks. The radio host of @showderuben told reporters from this journalistic alliance that he published the news about Pichirilo because he knew he was well-known in Güiria. “This is a small town and everyone knows each other here,” he explained, although he denied knowing anything about the circumstances of his death. Reporters from Rebel Alliance Investigates (ARI)—a coalition of the Venezuelan independent media outlets Runrunes, Tal Cual, and El Pitazo—allied with this investigation, confirmed in Güiria that Pichirilo's name was Eduardo Jaime, and that he was a beloved futsal player in that coastal town on the Venezuelan Caribbean coast. A family member later confirmed to this alliance by phone that Eduardo Jaime was on the boat that was shot down on October 14. From September 2015 until April 26 of this year, in what was called Operation Southern Spear, U.S. military forces destroyed 58 vessels with missile strikes and caused the deaths of 172 people like Eduardo Jaime—according to confirmation from the U.S. Southern Command in response to questions sent by this journalistic team via email. Since then, and until May 5, when this story was finalized, the U.S. government has publicly announced that it carried out two more attacks that killed five more people. US authorities also counted a total of 12 other missing persons, presumed dead. However, this journalistic alliance verified with sources in Costa Rica that of three presumed survivors of a March bombing at sea off the coast of that country, two died before reaching land. Thus, the death toll reached 179 as of May 5. In its written response, the US Southern Command stated that “every action taken during Operation Southern Spear is deliberate, legal, and precise, directed squarely against narco-terrorists and their facilitators. We have full confidence in the operations and intelligence professionals who inform our missions.” (See the full response here) However, days after the attack in which Pichirilo was killed that same October, Trump administration officials acknowledged in reports to members of Congress and their staff that they did not know the identity or background of the people they killed, as revealed by The Intercept. “It’s a double tragedy, not only because of the illegal killings, but also because the victims are erased, rendered anonymous,” said John Walsh of WOLA, a Washington-based human rights organization in Latin America, in a telephone interview with CLIP. Agreeing with Walsh and many others, including human rights experts, members of Congress, former U.S. government officials, and civil society organizations, who have questioned the legality of killing these men on the mere suspicion that they might be transporting drugs, a transnational journalistic alliance has been working since last December to identify these dead men, convinced that by revealing their faces and stories, their humanity will emerge. The alliance, coordinated by the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP), brings together media outlets from the ARI region of Venezuela; 360, Casa Macondo, and Verdad Abierta of Colombia; and Guardian of Trinidad and Tobago. And freelance journalists in the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Costa Rica, and Mexico, with technical and financial support from Airwars, today release the first findings of the investigation, "Bombed, Without the Right to Defense." This collaborative investigation has been a painstaking task, weaving together the loose threads of many tragedies. To this end, we have visited hamlets and coastal towns in La Guajira and Nariño, Colombia, and Sucre, Venezuela; interviewed family members, friends, and acquaintances of victims, as well as local authorities and reporters in five countries; tracked and verified hundreds of social media posts; identified dozens of publications from recognized media outlets in multiple countries and languages; made dozens of information requests to authorities; contacted prosecutors' offices, hospitals, morgues, and embassies; and verified public and judicial records. With all this information, we built a database that, we hope, will contribute to raising awareness that these men were human beings who deserved to be tried if they were suspected of committing any crime. Most sources are anonymous because everyone is afraid to speak. Some relatives of victims in Venezuela and Santa Marta, Colombia, according to sources consulted by this alliance, say they have received threats. Others don't want to say anything because they fear reprisals from their governments or, worse, from the drug lords who rule where they live. Government agencies have been tight-lipped, and officials who respond only do so off the record because they don't want to cause problems for their countries with the United States. Adding the names of the people other media outlets and organizations have managed to identify, along with the new fatalities identified by this journalistic alliance, we have been able to obtain the full names of 16 of those killed in these attacks. We identified the nationality of two more, and the nickname of another. We have information about the identities of two other people whose remains washed ashore on a beach in northern Colombia days after an attack, but we don't know for sure if they were killed in a bombing. We have the full name of another possible victim. We have identified three wounded survivors. It's like looking for needles in a haystack of 179 people killed between September 2nd and May 5th, and the count continues… Each explosion shatters the ship and its crew—whether traffickers, passengers, or fishermen—into a thousand pieces. Their identities are blown to bits across vast oceans. This cross-border journalistic collaboration also found that the destructive wave doesn't stop there. As the on-the-ground reporting will show, Operation Southern Spear has further unraveled the fabric of communities already broken and broken by organized crime and the absence of the state, and has terrorized fishermen and travelers to the point of paralyzing the economy of a town in Nariño. We also verified that it disrupted at least 18 commercial flights in the Colombian Caribbean. Furthermore, we documented how it has fragmented international cooperation in the fight against illegal drugs, because other democracies fear being involved in actions that disregard international agreements governing the sea and international human rights law. The shockwave of the bombing reverberates with the fear among officials and prosecutors of revealing details of the rescues or their coordinates, as the neighbor to the North could retaliate with new tariffs or personal attacks on the government. Often, they don't even respond to those asking about their dead. The Bombed On the same boat as 'Pichirilo,' the soccer player, were Chad Joseph and Rishi Samaroo, two Trinidadians, whose relatives are now suing the U.S. government for their extrajudicial killings. The world learned of Chad and Samaroo because their families filed a legal complaint last January in a federal court in Massachusetts, seeking compensation for damages related to their deaths. According to the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian, a member of this alliance, last December, in the village where Joseph was born—he was 26 years old at the time of the October 14 bombing—everyone had known him since childhood as a fisherman. He had left his hometown of Matelot, a fishing village on the Trinidadian coast, to live with an aunt in Las Cuevas, a community with lifelong ties to Venezuela. “It was Joseph’s family, being among the first to identify him among more than 100 people who have lost their lives in the attacks, who shone a human light on the people who have died as a result of the United States’ attacks in the Caribbean Sea. The human stories prompted members of Congress to begin putting pressure on the Trump administration, demanding transparency about these attacks and attempting to question and stop them,” wrote the Trinidad & Tobago Guardian, two months after his presumed death. That same publication interviewed Lenore Burnley, Chad’s mother, who said that “since hearing the news, her life has been characterized by the contradictory storm of having a faint hope and the stark reality of Joseph’s sudden death, without a body to bury.” And when The Guardian asked her why she thought Joseph had risked going out, she replied: “I know the law of the sea; I’ve known it since I was young. If it’s a ship, or something like that, you’re supposed to stop it, you see? The law isn’t about killing people. Wherever you are, you shouldn’t kill people like that. This is the first time in my life, and I’m 51 years old. I’ve never heard of anything like this.” The local newspaper reported that, according to Chad Joseph’s partner, he had called her to say he was returning home from Venezuela. Sallycar Korasingh, Rishi Samaroo’s sister, said he was a hard-working man who had paid his debt to society and was just trying to get back on his feet and earn a decent living in Venezuela by raising cows and goats to help support his family, the ACLU said in a statement. “If the U.S. government believed Rishi had done something wrong, they should have arrested, charged, and detained him, not killed him. They must be held accountable,” said Korasingh. Representing Joseph’s mother and Samaroo’s sister in their case before the U.S. courts are the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Center for Constitutional Rights, and Professor Jonathan Hafetz of Seton Hall Law School. The lawyers filed the suit under admiralty law, which allows individuals to seek compensation for damages from those responsible for wrongful death, as defined by the Death at Sea Act (DOHSA), recognized by the United States. They also invoked the Alien Torts Statute, which allows foreigners to sue in the United States for extrajudicial killings, prohibited under international human rights law. “The deaths of Joseph and Samaroo were clearly extrajudicial killings,” Steven Watt, one of the ACLU lawyers, explained to this journalistic alliance. They cannot be justified with arguments like those put forward by the Trump administration, that being in a war on drugs justifies the use of violent attacks, he said. Watt also said that his legal team, in a separate request based on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), requested the legal memorandum produced by the Office of Legal Counsel of the Department of Justice, which outlines the official legal rationale for these attacks, because the government has not made it public to date. The relatives of the Trinidadians maintain that neither of them was carrying drugs, that they were ordinary citizens returning to their homes in Las Cuevas, Trinidad, after working in Venezuela. According to local sources who spoke to ARI, the Venezuelan media coalition allied with this investigation, a man named Dushak Milovcic had traveled on the same boat attacked on October 14. An AP report stated that Milovcic, 24, “started as a lookout for smugglers,” had been at the Venezuelan National Guard Academy, and, according to sources who spoke to the AP reporter, was now involved with drug traffickers. The boat attacked on October 14 was not the only one suspected of carrying illegal drugs due to the high number of passengers. Several news outlets and observers also expressed doubts about the first boat bombed on September 2, 2025, which had 11 passengers on board. According to some people interviewed on the ground, who are familiar with the movement of the boats and spoke with allies of this investigation in La Guajira, Colombia, and Sucre, it is common for the same boats that carry drugs on their way to Venezuela to bring passengers back. The “captains,” as those who pilot these boats are called, sign up for any job that comes up. Reported by: Vera Ferrari “To all the narco-terrorists who threaten our homeland: if you want to stay alive, stop trafficking drugs. If you continue trafficking lethal drugs, we will kill you,” threatened Pete Hegseth, U.S. Secretary of War, on November 7, the day after a deadly attack on a speedboat with three occupants in the Caribbean, off the coast of Colombia. With statements like these, anyone would imagine that multiple Pablo Escobars and Chapo Guzmans had just been killed. Reporters from this alliance found a very different reality. The remains of two people, presumably killed on November 6, appeared in Puerto López, Uribia, in La Guajira, Colombia. Various sources in La Guajira said the two men came from Pedernales, Dominican Republic, a province bordering Haiti in the Enriquillo region, where 72% of households live in poverty. A Dominican reporter confirmed to this alliance that dozens of young people leave from there to make a living in Colombia or elsewhere, and many are recruited to smuggle cocaine from the Colombian Caribbean coast back to the island in small boats. Since no one came to claim the bodies that washed ashore on the Colombian beach, because they had no relatives there, the Wayuu indigenous community living in that region buried them, as reported at the time by The New York Times. A month later, forensic technicians from the Colombian Institute of Legal Medicine arrived and exhumed them. According to the Colombian news outlet 360-grados.co, a partner in this journalistic collaboration, this occurred between December 12 and 13, and as of this writing, the bodies remain refrigerated at the Forensic Medicine Institute in Barranquilla. Sources from the Colombian Attorney General's Office indicated that one of the bodies exhumed in La Guajira likely did not come from the attacked boats, given its state of decomposition. Local sources stated that they knew that the remains of another Dominican man who died on the boat on November 6 were not found in Colombia. The body had been dragged beyond Castilletes, some 20 kilometers inland into Venezuelan territory, where it is believed that members of the Wayuu community buried it. We were unable to confirm this version. (See “The victims of the Southern Command who were buried in La Guajira”). These young Dominicans are not very different from those in Uribia, in the Colombian region of La Guajira, where they went to look for work. Uribia is the poorest municipality in Colombia: 92% of its residents lack education, healthcare, and basic public services. This makes it easy to recruit them to transport cocaine, and they are paid for it, according to a boatman interviewed by the news outlet 360. “Most of the people here aren't owners; most of the owners of the merchandise are always from outside, we could even say internationally: they buy the merchandise here [in Colombia] and then wait for it at its destination,” the boatman explained to this journalistic alliance. Dozens of Dominicans have fallen into this trap of hope for a better life, and many have disappeared. Now the uncertainty is even worse for their relatives because they don't know if they were killed by U.S. missiles. This is what a Dominican woman, who spoke with this alliance but prefers not to give her name, fears. She hasn't heard from her brother Francisco—who worked various jobs in the tourism sector and had agreed to transport a shipment of drugs—since he called her from a boat about to set sail for home. It was mid-November, and he was using a satellite phone. It was a short conversation. He asked about his parents and told her he was coming back. He never returned. The bombings have also led many victims not to report disappearances. The reason? According to Dominican journalist Manuel González Feliz, it's a mixture of fear and shame among family members. As in Pedernales or La Guajira, Colombia, for many communities on the Colombian Pacific coast, transporting cocaine is not a criminal choice, but a survival strategy. The isolation of this region of jungles and mangroves, which stretches 1,300 kilometers from north to south of the country, contributes to its poverty. In Tumaco, Colombia's second-largest Pacific port and the departure point for many transporters, 84% of the population lives in multidimensional poverty. Drug trafficking groups exploit this situation by offering jobs in laboratories, shipyards, and as transporters. “It's the only source of employment that keeps these communities going. I know it's illegal, but it's what we have,” explains Duván Caicedo, a community leader in the small village of Pital de Costa, nestled between a river and the jungle on Colombia's Pacific coast. The 1,200 inhabitants of the hamlet live without potable water or a health clinic, a two-hour boat ride from Tumaco and the nearest hospital. A cocaine processing lab is the only source of work. In Sucre, the Venezuelan state where Güiria is located, 90% of the population lacks food security. According to ARI, almost no one is exclusively involved in cocaine trafficking. These boats are the lifeblood of the people on that coast: they bring and take away food, fish, and medicine. They carry workers from Venezuela to Trinidad and back, fishermen going out to bring in the day's catch, migrants fleeing authoritarianism, and also traffickers. (See story "All the 'turns' in Güiria"). When they carry drugs, there are usually two or at most three people on board: a driver and two assistants. This investigation reveals that the victims of the US bombings who came from Güiria worked as fishermen, motorcycle taxi drivers, bus drivers, and some of them had risked making a trip with cocaine because they couldn't support their families. Thus, Juan Carlos Fuentes, 43, a lifelong driver, and Luis Ramón Amundaraín, a 36-year-old fisherman and motorcycle taxi driver, had been in Trinidad and Tobago since September 28, 2025. Juan Carlos, his wife says, was desperate for money. A Yutong bus he used for his livelihood was damaged, and he couldn't afford to repair it. He called her from Trinidad the day before the October 3 bombing in which he presumably died and told her he was about to leave; that he wasn't carrying drugs. Ramón, his partner says, "went to look for more income" because the earnings from fishing and motorcycle taxis were no longer enough for his family of seven. She told ARI reporters that her husband was a fisherman. "They say he's a narco-terrorist," she said, but she maintains that if he were, they would have assets, and they don't even own a house. His family believes he died with Juan Carlos on October 3. What the women say makes sense, because their husbands were coming from Trinidad and Tobago to Venezuela, and the drugs flow in the opposite direction. Another man, Eduard Hidalgo, 46, had been a skilled fisherman and had left for the United States at the end of 2014. He was deported a year later. A friend maintains that although he had transported various goods for the criminal bosses in the area, he didn't want to make any more trips, "but they forced him." She believes he died in the bombing of a boat on February 23. (See story "The gringos exploited them": How three Venezuelans ended up on the boats attacked by the United States) Fear and hunger It's not just the families of the dead who mourn them today. The shockwaves are also impacting the communities. For example, for several days, fishermen in the rural area of Buenaventura, Colombia's main Pacific port, suspended their work for fear of not returning home, although they gradually resumed fishing later. The municipality of Olaya Herrera, in Nariño, was the most affected. A person working in the region's humanitarian sector, who asked to remain anonymous, told this alliance that many people there depend on the money collected by truckers after completing a trip. "When they return, money comes into the community, commerce picks up, and everyone benefits," they said. With the fear of making trips transporting drugs, money stopped coming into the families. "We are experiencing a very difficult situation," says Father Luis Carrillo. "It started to be felt in November, but it became critical in February." In coordination with the Mayor's office, the priest requested assistance from the Food Bank in Bogotá, and in March, 700 food baskets arrived by boat from Buenaventura and were distributed in the town of Bocas de Satinga and the surrounding rural area. “Obviously, that doesn’t alleviate even one percent of the needs,” says the parish priest. Who is investigating? Authorities in no country, from the United States to Colombia or Mexico, reveal how much drug was lost, how many of those killed in bombings were transporting it, or their names. They haven’t even reported how they gathered the intelligence that led them to identify these victims as military targets. This journalistic alliance sent a questionnaire with these and other questions to the United States Southern Command. They responded that “for reasons of operational security and the protection of forces, we do not discuss intelligence or details about our operational processes and planning.” His spokesperson also said that “the threat that narco-terrorists and cartels pose to human life cannot be ignored. They have escalated their violence to unprecedented levels, going beyond mere criminal conduct by committing unspeakable acts of terror. It is not only their criminal rivals who are in their sights; they are waging war against law-abiding citizens, entire communities, and government institutions, carrying out atrocious acts to impose their will and satisfy their insatiable thirst for illicit income.” Sources at the Dominican Republic embassy in Colombia confirmed to this news team that the only information received regarding the possible deaths of two of their citizens came from a speech by Colombian President Gustavo Petro; however, no official steps have been taken to identify them. They described the matter as “politically sensitive.” In Ecuador, the Navy's Coast Guard Service has not released any details about the search and rescue operations for possible survivors that—according to the U.S.—began after a bombing in the Pacific on February 9, 2026, as confirmed by a reporter supporting this investigation in that country. In the Costa Rican Pacific, authorities recovered two bodies and one survivor. The two deceased were Ecuadorian. Reporters from this alliance were able to confirm with security sources in Ecuador that one of them, Pedro Ramón Holguín Holguín, owned a fish retail business in Manta, a coastal city that is now a center of drug trafficking activity in the country. They also established that the Ecuadorian embassy in Costa Rica assisted with the identification of the remains, but their bodies are still in a morgue in San José, the Costa Rican capital. Casa Macondo, an ally of this investigation in Colombia, sent information requests to various authorities. DIMAR, the Colombian maritime authority, asserted that no one had reported any bombings in its territorial waters. Last November, the Foreign Ministry convened a meeting with the Ministry of Defense, the Navy, and the National Intelligence Directorate. The result was that all entities stated they had no official information beyond what had been reported in the media. The written conclusion, signed by the Director of Territorial Sovereignty, Javier Pava Sánchez, was that “our sovereignty has not been violated.” Thirteen days after that meeting, the Colombian ambassador to the OAS addressed the Permanent Council to denounce these same attacks as violations of international law. On December 23, Colombia reiterated this denunciation at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. The President of Colombia himself, Gustavo Petro, publicly stated that he had visited the home of Alejandro Andrés Carranza, a fisherman whose house was bombed on September 15, in Santa Marta, and had seen that he was living in poverty. He denounced these attacks as extrajudicial executions. Furthermore, he facilitated a meeting between a US lawyer and Carranza's family so they could consider filing a lawsuit for damages, according to the lawyer in question, Daniel Kovalik, who spoke to reporters from this alliance. Kovalik ultimately filed a complaint with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the OAS, arguing that Carranza's death was an extrajudicial execution and that the United States therefore violated the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man. The verbal attacks between Presidents Trump and Petro, which had been escalating for some time, became heated after these statements. Finally, President Petro met with Trump at the White House, and the accusations subsided. Sources at the Colombian Foreign Ministry now claim that the issue is so sensitive that they neither mention it nor provide any information about it. One of Casa Macondo's requests for information did bear fruit and revealed an effect of these bombings that had gone unnoticed: that coinciding with the aerial attacks on the suspected boats, the number of disruptions to commercial flights in Colombia increased in 2025. Using information from Aerocivil (the Colombian civil aviation authority), Casa Macondo determined that between January and July 2025, between four and five incidents involving the GPS systems of commercial aircraft were reported monthly, a level within the expected range for any airspace. But from August onward, coinciding with the eve of the bombing campaign, the reports increased fivefold. For the year, it recorded a total of 251 reports of GPS failures and classified them as unrelated to its systems. It closed the case without investigating the cause. Aerocivil reported that during 18 commercial flights over the northern Caribbean, pilots experienced GPS malfunctions while crossing AMBAS—the name given to an air navigation coordinate system over the Caribbean Sea, north of Colombia, where routes connecting Bogotá and Medellín with Miami, New York, Santo Domingo, and Curaçao converge. The signal was lost for between eight minutes and an hour—while the aircraft were flying at altitudes between 30,000 and 40,000 feet (approximately nine to twelve kilometers)—and was restored upon leaving Colombian airspace. The GPS always shut down in the same location and always reconnected once the aircraft had moved away. In one of the cases reported by Aerocivil, a pilot's GPS failed, and then, due to another malfunction, the transponder—the device that tells ground radar where the aircraft is—stopped transmitting. In the cockpit, the anti-collision system alarms activated, as if the ground were close, when in reality the aircraft was thousands of feet in the air. The pilot, who spoke with this news alliance on condition of anonymity, said he was frightened because it had never happened to him before, but that airplanes have at least three redundant navigation systems, and there is always a backup when one fails. "There was no danger to the passengers," he said. By providing these records, the aviation authority acknowledged that these incidents constitute a "disruption to civil air navigation" and officially classified them under its "hazard identification" protocol for airspace safety. (See Story: Commercial planes flew with interference coinciding with US bombings of the boats) Attacks that undermine the fight against drug trafficking Missile strikes may be more spectacular and violent than the quiet, regular interception and seizure that President Trump had been denigrating as useless, but no less effective for that. Thus, while Trump celebrated his first bombing on September 2nd of the boat with 11 crew members, as an attack against terrorists from the Tren de Aragua gang “identified with certainty” and claimed that it was carrying “massive quantities of drugs,” the Vice President asserted that it was the best and highest use of the armed forces. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, echoing these statements the following day, asserted that intercepting drug-carrying boats had not worked. “Instead of intercepting them, we blew them up, following the President’s order. And it’s going to happen again,” he said. What the US government officials failed to mention is that on that same September 2nd, Operation Zeus took place, which, however, did not involve lightning from the sky like the bombing that killed the 11 crew members. In Operation Zeus, the Colombian Aerospace Force had detected a suspicious vessel in the same Caribbean waters and shared the coordinates with the Dominican Air Force. The latter, in coordination with the US Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JIATF-S) at Naval Air Station Key West in Florida, dispatched naval units to intercept it. They boarded the vessel, arrested its two crew members, and seized 448 kilograms of cocaine, turned over evidence to a criminal case, and there were no fatalities. It wasn't the only one. A CLIP investigation tracked regular counternarcotics interdictions in the Caribbean and Pacific conducted by U.S. entities in cooperation with European and Latin American countries between September 2025 and February 2026. The investigation relied on information from law enforcement and press reports in various languages and countries, and consulted public records available through Global Fishing Watch's API v3 and Vesseltracker. It found that, thanks to this international cooperation, at least 140 tons of cocaine were seized and 160 crew members were arrested and subsequently brought to justice without a single shot being fired. The investigation also revealed that, coinciding with the operation targeting speedboats, the Tasmanian-flagged tugboat Little Girls, the Greek fishing vessel Ourania A, and the older Turkish-owned vessel United S all passed through the Atlantic loaded with drugs. None of these vessels were destroyed by missiles. They waited until the vessels reached a safe location to immobilize them, seize the drugs they were carrying, and arrest their crews. Furthermore, the operation against the Ourania A led to the arrest of a known Greek drug trafficker. Regular anti-narcotics operations and lethal attacks were carried out in the same waters, during the same weeks, with intelligence coordination that in several cases passed through the same institutional nodes: the MAOC-N in Lisbon, the Joint Interagency Task Force-South (JITF-S) in Key West, and the DEA. (See story: For large shipments, justice; for small ones, bombs). Who makes the decisions? Who ordered which vessel to blow up and which to let pass and then detain civilly? That's what we asked Southern Command. He did not answer the question, but instead sent the following comment: “Operation Southern Spear is being conducted under the orders of our Commander-in-Chief to defend U.S. homeland, protect regional partners, and maintain law and order by preventing narco-terrorists, cartels, and their network of accomplices from gaining a foothold in the Western Hemisphere through an overwhelming presence. The objective of the operation is to detect, disrupt, and dismantle the networks of cartels and other transnational organizations that the President of the United States, by executive order, has designated as terrorist organizations.” Legal experts have already raised concerns about the meaning of the term “narco-terrorist,” but Brian Finucane, senior advisor to the U.S. Program at the International Crisis Group and a former lawyer in the Office of the General Counsel at the U.S. Department of State, told this alliance that the U.S. military’s comments in response to this report take those concerns a step further. “The law of war permits violence that would otherwise be prohibited, but only during a genuine armed conflict—a threshold the Trump administration has failed to reach, as it hasn’t even identified who the United States is supposed to be fighting,” he said. “Beyond that fundamental problem, the administration’s suggestion that vaguely defined ‘facilitators’ can be targeted raises further concerns that it is violating the rules of its own flawed legal paradigm.” While international cooperation in the fight against drug trafficking proceeded normally and without fatalities during the six months from September to February, the multiple attacks carried out by the U.S. government left 140 dead, with no publicly reported cocaine seizures and destroying the forensic evidence that could lead to identifying the major drug traffickers who control the routes. In fact, the Colombian Attorney General's Office only opened a preliminary inquiry against survivor Jonathan Obando Pérez, according to El País América, "but does not foresee turning it into a formal investigation, as it lacks evidence to indicate that Obando Pérez committed any crime in Colombia." Therefore, after leaving the hospital, he was released. A source cited by AP from the Ecuadorian Attorney General's Office also stated that it "did not find sufficient evidence to initiate legal action" against Andrés Fernando Tufiño, a survivor of an attack in the Caribbean on October 16. Due to potential violations of human rights and the law of the sea, authorities in the United Kingdom and Canada said they would not share intelligence with their counterparts in the United States, as reported by Time. British sources told the magazine last November that "British officials believe that the US military strikes that have killed 76 people violate international law" and, therefore, suspended cooperation on these types of attacks in October. And Canadian sources said that their government “does not want its intelligence to help locate ships as targets for deadly strikes.” Last January, the Dutch Defense Minister said in Aruba that interdiction operations would continue in his country's territorial waters, but they would not use their naval station ship for operations related to the United States' Operation Southern Spear (the bombing operation). “No European country, including France, will send operational intelligence to the Americans in the current situation if it could be used as a basis for a military attack on a ship,” Dimitro Zoulas, head of the French police's anti-drug service, told Radio Caraibes (RCI). And Euractiv confirmed with a French security source that “it is 100 percent clear that the Europeans are not giving the United States any intelligence that could lead to a strike (against the ships).” The Colombian government had announced something similar, but a high-ranking diplomatic official who spoke with CLIP and asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, said that Colombia continues to share its intelligence with its U.S. counterpart as usual, but did not specify for which operations. In response to these criticisms, the Southern Command sent to this journalistic alliance, stating: “U.S. forces operate under rules of engagement that are consistent with international maritime law against activities that pose a direct threat to U.S. security and the lives of U.S. citizens. As a military organization entrusted with the defense of our homeland, we are fully committed to missions that directly support the health and safety of the American people.” Last April, a coalition of 125 civil society organizations from around the world (including Airwars, which provided expert information to this journalistic alliance, Human Rights Watch, and Amnesty International, among others) issued an urgent public appeal for countries to “immediately stop or refrain from supporting extrajudicial killings by the United States in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.” “We must remember that all these individuals have names, families, and lives that will never be the same,” said Jamil Dakwar, director of the ACLU’s Human Rights Program, at a hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the OAS (IACHR) on April 13. That organization, in addition to representing the two Trinidadian victims before a U.S. federal court, asked the IACHR to declare that missile strikes on vessels violate international law and proposed the creation of a special group to investigate the implications these strikes have had in the hemisphere. Why do they do it, then? It's difficult to understand why the Trump administration insists on continuing the bombings, despite their failure to stem the flow of drugs. Even Admiral Nathan Moore, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard's Atlantic Area, a proponent of using all methods, including bombings, acknowledged that they haven't seen any noticeable difference in the flow of cocaine. Moore stated, after 21 bombings in November 2025, that neither the traffickers' routes, nor the pace, nor the purity of the drug have changed. It's likely they succeeded in getting traffickers to stop using some routes, especially those used by go-fast boats—according to an analysis by InSight Crime, a media outlet specializing in organized crime—but the operation didn't "prevent traffickers from moving cocaine by other means," such as increasing their use of the Amazon route. Nor is it difficult for major drug traffickers to replace the dead with other men drawn into their networks by desperation, poverty, and unemployment, as these are plentiful along Latin American coasts. Attacking the weakest link in the multibillion-dollar drug trafficking business is nothing new. Our countries have been doing it without solving the problem for over 50 years. This new strategy of blowing up boats and killing unknown suspects takes this policy to the extreme. Missiles have caused tremendous suffering and plunge poor families and communities into even greater hardship, unable to defend themselves against the majestic U.S. military power or its omnipresent rhetoric. Furthermore, as discussed here, it alienates international cooperation and leaves the United States more isolated in the face of crime. Why then persist on such a risky and fruitless path for more than eight months? “The Trump administration believes in the show of force for reasons that have very little to do with effective interdiction,” says Walsh of WOLA. “They want to impress citizens, making them believe that they are finally putting an end to the terrible problem of drug trafficking, something other governments failed to do. The profound cruelty and callousness with which they order these systematic and intentional killings allows them to project the threatening nature of nameless ‘narco-terrorists.’ In this way, they shock many Americans while numbing the notion that the U.S. officials responsible for these killings must be held accountable.” The figure of President Trump and his top War and State officials, accompanying their bombings with explosive videos and triumphant social media posts, orchestrates a spectacle of disproportionate power against humble men, mostly poor, and in any case, only suspected of transporting drugs. As a Venezuelan woman, the wife of a man killed in a bombing, said, “Donald Trump didn’t stop to think; he’s killing a father and doesn’t know why this man got on that boat.” Do you have more information about this story? Write to us at investigaciones@elclip.org

“Reportan el fallecimiento del popular Pichirilo, gran talento deportivo Valdeciano. Nuestras palabras de condolencias a sus familiares”, publicó el 15 de octubre de 2025 @elshowderuben, una página de Facebook del programa del mismo nombre en la Emisora Radio Güiria Internacional de Venezuela. Su comentario tuvo 483 reacciones de emojis llorando, o de personas lamentando su muerte.  “Pichirilo no sabes cómo me duele tu noticia, nunca te voy a olvidar”, escribió una amiga. “Descansa en paz, Eduardo popular pichirilo”, “que en paz descanses pana pichirilo excelente deportista. Gran talento frente al arco.”, dijeron otros.  El día anterior, el 14 de octubre, un misil disparado por militares estadounidenses había volado una lancha fuera de la costa venezolana, frente a Güiria, un pueblo en el municipio de Valdés, del estado Sucre y  punto de salida hacia Trinidad y Tobago. Según se vio en el video oficial del gobierno estadounidense, la embarcación estaba quieta cuando la atacaron. Era el quinto golpe que propinaba Estados Unidos a barcos en el Caribe. Con las seis personas que cayeron ahí, completaban ya 27 muertos.   El presidente de Estados Unidos, Donald Trump  aseguró en su red social que su secretario de Guerra, Pete Hegseth, había dado la orden de asestar ese golpe en una ruta conocida de tráfico de drogas, en aguas internacionales, y que inteligencia de su país “confirmó que la lancha traficaba narcóticos” y estaba asociada a redes de narcoterroristas. El locutor radial del @showderuben le dijo a reporteros de esta alianza periodística que él publicó la noticia de Pichirilo porque sabía que era muy conocido en Güiria. “Este es un pueblo pequeño y aquí todo el mundo se conoce”, explicó, aunque negó saber nada acerca de las circunstancias en las que murió.  Reporteros de Alianza Rebelde Investiga (ARI) –una coalición de los medios independientes venezolanos Runrunes, Tal Cual y El Pitazo –, aliados a esta investigación, confirmaron en Güiria que el nombre de Pichirilo era Eduardo Jaime, y que era un jugador de fútbol de sala, querido en ese pueblo costero del Caribe venezolano. Una familiar le confirmó luego por teléfono a esta alianza que Eduardo Jaime venía en la lancha volada el 14 de octubre.  Desde septiembre de 2025 y hasta el 26 de abril pasado, en la llamada Operación Lanza del Sur (Southern Spear), las fuerzas militares de Estados Unidos llevaban 58 embarcaciones destruidas a golpes de misil y habían causado la muerte a 172 personas como Eduardo Jaime –según confirmó el Comando Sur de los Estados Unidos en respuesta por correo a las preguntas que envió este equipo periodístico.  Desde entonces, y hasta el 5 de mayo, cuando se cerró esta historia, el gobierno de ese país ha anunciado públicamente que realizó otros dos ataques donde mataron otras cinco personas.  Las autoridades estadounidenses además contabilizaron en total a otros 12 desaparecidos, que se presumen muertos. No obstante, esta alianza periodística verificó con fuentes en Costa Rica, que de tres presumidos sobrevivientes, luego de un bombardeo en marzo en el mar frente a ese país, dos fallecieron antes de llegar a tierra. Así, la cuenta de los muertos llega 179 hasta el 5 de mayo.  En su respuesta escrita, el Comando Sur de ese país dijo que “cada acción tomada durante la Operación Southern Spear (Lanza del Sur) es deliberada, legal y precisa, dirigida directamente contra los narcoterroristas y sus facilitadores. Tenemos plena confianza en los profesionales de operaciones e inteligencia que informan nuestras misiones”. (Ver toda la respuesta aquí) No obstante, días después del ataque en que murió Pichirilo, en ese mismo octubre, funcionarios del gobierno de Trump reconocieron en reportes a congresistas y sus asistentes que no sabían la identidad ni la historia de las personas que matan, según reveló The Intercept. “Es una tragedia doble no sólo por los asesinatos ilegales, sino que las víctimas son borradas, convertidas en anónimas”, dijo, en entrevista telefónica con el CLIP, John Walsh, de WOLA, una organización de defensa de los derechos humanos en Latinoamérica basada en Washington.  Coincidiendo con Walsh y muchos otros, entre expertos en derechos humanos, congresistas, ex funcionarios del gobierno estadounidense y organizaciones civiles, que han cuestionado la legalidad de matar a estos hombres por la sola sospecha de que podían estar transportando drogas, desde diciembre pasado, una alianza periodística transnacional se dio a la tarea de ponerles nombre a estos muertos, convencidos de que  al conocer sus rostros e historias, emergerá su humanidad.  La alianza, coordinada por el Centro Latinoamericano de Investigación Periodística, CLIP, que reúne a los medios de la región ARI de Venezuela; 360, Casa Macondo y Verdad Abierta de Colombia; Guardian de Trinidad Tobago; y periodistas freelance en República Dominicana, Ecuador, Costa Rica y México con el apoyo técnico y financiero de Airwars, hoy lanza los primeros hallazgos de la investigación Bombardeados, sin derecho a la defensa.  Esta investigación colaborativa ha sido una labor de filigrana, tejiendo hilos sueltos de muchas tragedias. Para ello, hemos visitado caseríos y pueblos costeros en La Guajira y Nariño, en Colombia y en Sucre, Venezuela; entrevistado a familiares, amigos y conocidos de víctimas, autoridades y reporteros locales en cinco países; rastreado y verificado cientos de posteos en redes sociales; identificado decenas de publicaciones de medios reconocidos en múltiples países e idiomas; realizado decenas de peticiones de información a autoridades; contactado fiscalías, hospitales, morgues y embajadas; y hemos verificado registros públicos y judiciales. Con toda esa información, construimos una base de datos que, esperamos, contribuya al elevar la consciencia de que estos hombres eran seres humanos, que merecían haber sido juzgados si eran sospechosos de cometer algún delito.  La mayoría de las fuentes son anónimas porque todo el mundo teme hablar. Algunos familiares de víctimas en Venezuela y en Santa Marta (Colombia), según confirmaron fuentes consultadas a esta alianza,  dicen haber recibido amenazas. Otros no quieren contar nada porque temen represalias de sus gobiernos o, peor, de los señores del narco que mandan en donde viven. Las entidades han resultado herméticas y los funcionarios que responden, sólo lo hacen off the record porque no quieren meter en líos a sus países con Estados Unidos. Sumando las personas que otros medios y organizaciones han conseguido nombrar y las nuevas víctimas mortales identificadas por esta alianza periodística, hemos podido conseguir los nombres y apellidos de 16 de los muertos en estos ataques. De dos más, identificamos su nacionalidad; y de otro, su apodo. De otras dos personas, cuyos restos fueron a dar a la playa al norte colombiano días después de un ataque, tenemos datos de quiénes eran, pero no sabemos con certeza si cayeron en un bombardeo. De otra posible víctima tenemos su nombre completo. Identificamos a tres sobrevivientes heridos. Es buscar agujas en un pajar de 179 ejecutados, desde el 2 de septiembre hasta el 5 de mayo, y seguimos contando… Cada explosión destroza al barco y a sus tripulantes, fuesen traficantes, pasajeros o pescadores, en mil pedazos. Sus identidades volaron al viento sobre océanos inmensos.  Esta colaboración periodística transfronteriza también encontró que la ola destructiva no para ahí. Como lo retratará la reportería en terreno, la Operación Southern Spear ha deshilachado además el tejido de comunidades, de por sí rotas y doblegadas por el crimen organizado y la ausencia de Estado, y ha aterrorizado a pescadores y viajantes, al punto que paró la economía de un pueblo nariñense. También verificamos que en el Caribe colombiano perturbó al menos 18 vuelos comerciales. Más allá, documentamos cómo ha fragmentado la cooperación internacional de combate a las drogas ilegales, porque otras democracias temen estar involucrados en acciones que desconozcan acuerdos internacionales que rigen el mar y el derecho internacional sobre los derechos humanos. Reverbera con la onda explosiva el temor entre funcionarios y fiscalías de revelar detalles de los rescates o sus coordenadas, pues el vecino del Norte puede revirar con nuevos aranceles o ataques personales a los gobernantes. Muchas veces, ni siquiera les responden a quienes están preguntando por sus muertos.  Los bombardeados En el mismo bote de ‘Pichirilo’, el jugador de fútbol, viajaban Chad Joseph y Rishi Samaroo, dos trinitenses, cuyas parientes ahora reclaman al gobierno estadounidense por sus ejecuciones extrajudiciales. De Chad y Samaroo se enteró el mundo porque sus familias presentaron una queja legal en enero pasado ante una corte federal de Massachusetts, Estados Unidos, buscando ser indemnizadas por daños y perjuicios por sus muertes.  Según reportó el Trinidad & Tobago Guardian, miembro de esta alianza, en diciembre pasado, en el pueblo donde nació Joseph –quien tenía 26 años al momento del  bombardeo del 14 de octubre – todos lo conocían desde niño como pescador. Se había ido desde su natal Matelot, un pueblo pesquero en la costa trinitense, a vivir a donde una tía en Las Cuevas, una comunidad con lazos de toda la vida con Venezuela.  “Fue la familia de Joseph, al ser una de las primeras en identificarlo entre más de 100 personas que han perdido su vida en los ataques, la que arrojó una luz humana sobre las personas que han muerto como resultado de los ataques de los Estados Unidos en el mar Caribe. Las historias humanas hicieron que congresistas comenzaran a ponerle presión al gobierno de Trump al pedir transparencia sobre estos ataques y al intentar cuestionarlos y detenerlos”, escribió el Trinidad & Tobago Guardian, al cumplirse dos meses de su presunta muerte.  Ese mismo medio entrevistó a Lenore Burnley, madre de Chad, quien dijo que “desde que supo la noticia, su vida se ha caracterizado por la tormenta contradictoria de tener una vaga esperanza y la cruda realidad de la súbita muerte de Joseph, sin que haya un cuerpo para enterrar”.  Y cuando Guardian le preguntó por qué creía que Joseph se había arriesgado a salir, ella respondió: “sé de la ley del mar; la conozco desde que era joven. Si es un barco, o una cosa así, se supone que tienes que detenerlo, ¿ves? La ley no consiste en matar a personas. Donde sea que estés, no debes matar a personas así. Esta es la primera vez en mi vida, y tengo 51 años. Nunca he escuchado de algo así”. Dijo el citado diario local que, según la la pareja de Chad Joseph, él la había llamado para decirle que iba de regreso a casa desde Venezuela.  Sallycar Korasingh, la hermana de Rishi Samaroo, había contado que él era un hombre trabajador que había pagado su deuda con la sociedad y solo intentaba recuperarse y ganarse la vida dignamente en Venezuela criando vacas y cabras para ayudar a mantener a su familia, según informó ACLU en un comunicado . “Si el gobierno de Estados Unidos creía que Rishi había hecho algo malo, debería haberlo arrestado, acusado y detenido, no asesinado. Deben rendir cuentas”, dijo Korasingh. Representan a la madre de Joseph y a la hermana de Samaroo en su caso ante la justicia estadounidense, la Asociación Americana de Derechos Civiles (más conocida como ACLU, por su sigla en inglés) , el Centro para los Derechos Constitucionales y el profesor Jonathan Hafetz, de la Escuela de Derecho Setton Hall.   Los abogados lo presentaron bajo la ley de demandas del almirantazgo, que les permite a personas reclamar compensación por daños a quien haya cometido una muerte por negligencia (wrongful death, en inglés), según el Acta de Muerte en Altamar (DOHSA), reconocida por Estados Unidos. Así mismo, invocaron el viejo Estatuto de Reclamación de Agravios Contra Extranjeros (Alien Torts Statute) que permite a los extranjeros reclamar en Estados Unidos por ejecuciones extrajudiciales, prohibidos en las leyes internacionales de Derechos Humanos.  “Las muertes de Joseph y Samaroo fueron claramente ejecuciones extrajudiciales”, explicó a esta alianza periodística Steven Watt, uno de los abogados de ACLU. No se pueden justificar con argumentos como los esgrimidos por el gobierno Trump, de que estar en guerra contra las drogas les justifica el uso de los ataques violentos, dijo.  Watt dijo además que su equipo legal, en una demanda independiente de ésta, basada en el Acta de Libertad de Información (FOIA por su sigla en inglés), pidió el memorando legal producido por la Oficina de Consejería Legal de del Departamento de Justicia, que expone la racionalidad jurídica oficial de estos ataques, porque el gobierno no la ha hecho público hasta ahora.  Las parientes de los trinitenses aseguran que ninguno de los dos llevaba drogas, que eran ciudadanos corrientes que estaban regresando a sus casas en Las Cuevas, en Trinidad, después de trabajar en Venezuela.   Según dijeron fuentes locales a ARI, la coalición periodística de medios venezolanos aliada de esta investigación, un hombre llamado Dushak Milovcic habría viajado en ese mismo barco atacado el 14 de octubre. Un reporte de la AP, informó que Milovcic, de 24 años, “comenzó como vigía para contrabandistas”, había estado en la Academia de la Guardia Nacional de Venezuela y, según dijeron fuentes a la reportera de esa agencia, ahora estaba involucrado con los transportadores de droga.  El del 14 de octubre no fue el único barco del que se sospecha no llevaba drogas ilegales por el alto número de pasajeros que transportaba. Varios medios de prensa y observadores también expresaron su duda frente al primer barco bombardeado el 2 de septiembre de 2025, en el que iban 11 pasajeros. Según algunos entrevistados en terreno, que conocen el movimiento de las lanchas y hablaron con aliados de esta investigación en La Guajira colombiana y en Sucre, es frecuente que las mismas embarcaciones que de ida llevan droga, de vuelta traigan pasajeros. Los “capitanes”, como se les dice a quienes pilotean esos barcos, se apuntan a cualquier trabajo que salga.  Realización: Vera Ferrari “A todos los narcoterroristas que amenazan nuestra patria: si quieren seguir vivos, paren de traficar drogas. Si siguen traficando drogas letales, los vamos a matar”, amenazó  Pete Hegseth, secretario de Guerra de Estados Unidos el 7 de noviembre, al otro día de un golpe mortal a una lancha con tres ocupantes en el Caribe, frente a las costas colombianas.  Por calificativos como estos, cualquiera imagina que acaban de matar a múltiples Pablos Escobares y Chapos Guzmanes.  Los reporteros de esta alianza encontraron una realidad muy distinta.  Restos de dos personas, presumiblemente caídos ese 6 de noviembre, aparecieron en Puerto López, Uribia, en La Guajira colombiana. Distintas fuentes guajiras dijeron que eran dos hombres provenientes de Pedernales, República Dominicana, una provincia fronteriza con Haití, en la región de Enriquillo, con 72% de los hogares en pobreza. Un reportero dominicano le confirmó a esta alianza que desde allí salen decenas de jóvenes a rebuscarse la vida en Colombia o en otros lados, y muchos son enganchados para traer cocaína desde las costas colombianas en el Caribe de vuelta a la isla, en viajes en lancha.  Como nadie venía a reclamar los cadáveres que llegaron a la playa colombiana, porque allí no tenían parientes, la comunidad indígena wayúu que habita en esa región los enterró, según reportó en su momento The New York Times. Un mes después, llegaron los técnicos forenses del Instituto de Medicina Legal colombiano y los exhumaron.  Según verificó el medio colombiano 360-grados.co, aliado de esta colaboración periodística, eso ocurrió entre el 12 y 13 de diciembre y, hasta el cierre de esta edición, permanecen refrigerados en Medicina Legal de Barranquilla. Fuentes de la Fiscalía colombiana indicaron que uno de los cadáveres desenterrados en La Guajira probablemente no provenía de las embarcaciones atacadas, dado su estado de descomposición.  Fuentes locales afirmaron saber que los restos del cuerpo de otro dominicano caído en la embarcación del 6 de noviembre no se encontraron en Colombia. El cuerpo había sido arrastrado más allá de Castilletes, unos 20 kilómetros tierra adentro en territorio venezolano, donde se cree que miembros de la comunidad wayúu lo enterraron. No pudimos confirmar esta versión.  (Ver “Las víctimas del Comando Sur a las que les echaron tierra en La Guajira”).  Esos jóvenes dominicanos no son muy distintos a los de Uribia, en La Guajira colombiana, la región a donde fueron a buscar trabajo. Este último es el municipio más pobre de Colombia: el 92% no tiene educación, ni salud, ni servicios públicos. Por ello es fácil engancharlos para acarrear cocaína y les pagan, según declaró un lanchero con el que habló el medio 360.   “La mayoría de la gente acá no son dueños, la mayoría de los dueños de la mercancía siempre son de afuera, podemos decir hasta internacionalmente: que compran la mercancía acá [en Colombia] y ellos mismos la esperan en su destino“, explicó el lanchero a esta alianza periodística.  Por ese agujero de la esperanza de hacerse una vida mejor han caído decenas de dominicanos y muchos han desaparecido. Ahora la incertidumbre es peor para sus parientes porque no saben si fueron volados por los misiles estadounidenses. Es lo que teme una mujer dominicana, con quien habló esta alianza, pero que prefiere no dar su nombre. Ella no sabe nada de su hermano Francisco –quien hacía diversos oficios en el sector turístico y había aceptado llevar una carga de drogas– desde que la llamó desde una lancha a punto de zarpar rumbo a casa. Fue a mediados de noviembre pasado y estaba usando un teléfono satelital. Fue una charla corta. Él preguntó por sus padres y le anunció su regreso. Nunca volvió.  Los bombardeos además han llevado a muchas víctimas a no denunciar las desapariciones. ¿La razón? Según el periodista dominicano Manuel González Feliz, es una mezcla de miedo y vergüenza entre los familiares.  Como en Pedernales o en La Guajira colombiana, para muchas comunidades de la costa Pacífica colombiana, el trabajo de transportar cocaína no es una elección criminal, sino una estrategia de supervivencia. El aislamiento de esta región de selvas y manglares que se extiende 1.300 kilómetros de norte a sur del país influye en que sea tan pobre. En Tumaco, el segundo puerto colombiano sobre el Pacífico, de donde salen muchos de los transportadores, un 84% de sus habitantes vive en la pobreza multidimensional. Y los grupos de narcotráfico se aprovechan ofreciendo trabajo en laboratorios, astilleros de embarcaciones y como transportistas. “Es la única fuente de empleo que mueve estas comunidades. Sé que es ilegal, pero es lo que hay”, explica Duván Caicedo, líder comunitario del pequeño poblado de Pital de Costa, situado entre un río y la selva en el Pacífico colombiano. Los 1.200 habitantes del caserío viven sin agua potable y sin puesto de salud, a dos horas en lancha desde Tumaco y desde el hospital más cercano. Un laboratorio de procesamiento de cocaína es la única fuente de trabajo. En Sucre, el estado de Venezuela donde queda Güiria, el 90 % de la gente no tiene segura su alimentación.  Según reporteó ARI, casi nadie se dedica exclusivamente a hacer viajes que lleven cocaína. Esas lanchas mueven la vida cotidiana de la gente en esa costa: traen y llevan comida, pescado, medicinas. En ellas viajan trabajadores de Venezuela a Trinidad y de regreso, o pescadores que salen a traer la pesca del día, migrantes que huyen del autoritarismo y también traficantes. (Ver historia Todas las”vueltas” en Güiria). Cuando cargan drogas, generalmente van dos o máximo tres personas, un conductor y dos ayudantes. Esta investigación revela que las víctimas de los bombardeos estadounidenses provenientes de Güiria se dedicaban a la pesca, a conducir mototaxi, a manejar bus, y  algunos de ellos se habían arriesgado a hacer un viaje con cocaína porque no podían sostener a sus familias. Así, Juan Carlos Fuentes, 43 años, chofer de “toda la vida”, y Luis Ramón Amundaraín, pescador y mototaxista, 36 años, estaban en Trinidad y Tobago desde el 28 de septiembre de 2025. Juan Carlos, dice su esposa, estaba desesperado por falta de dinero. Se le dañó un bus Yutong del que vivía y no lo pudo reparar.  Él la llamó desde Trinidad la víspera del bombardeo del 3 de octubre en que presumiblemente cayó y le dijo que estaba por salir; que no llevaba droga.  Ramón, dice su compañera, “se fue para buscar más ingresos” porque la ganancia de la pesca y los traslados en moto habían dejado de ser suficientes para su familia de siete. Ella contó a los reporteros de ARI que su esposo se dedicaba a la pesca. “Dicen que él es un narcoterrorista”, dijo, pero asegura que si lo fuera tendrían bienes, y ni siquiera tienen casa propia. Su familia cree que él murió con Juan Carlos el 3 de octubre.   Tiene sentido lo que dicen las mujeres, porque sus maridos venían de Trinidad y Tobago hacia Venezuela y las drogas fluyen en sentido contrario. Otro más, Eduard Hidalgo, de 46 años, había sido ducho pescador y se había ido a finales de 2024 a Estados Unidos. Lo deportaron un año después. Sostiene una amiga que si bien había transportado diversas mercancías para los jefes criminales de la zona, no quería hacer más viajes, “pero lo obligaron”.  Ella cree que cayó en el bombardeo de una lancha el 23 de febrero pasado.  (Ver historia “Los explotaron los gringos”: Cómo tres venezolanos terminaron en las lanchas atacadas por Estados Unidos) Miedo y hambre No sólo las familias de los muertos hoy los lloran.  La ondas expansivas también impactan a las comunidades. Por ejemplo, durante algunos días, pescadores de la zona rural de Buenaventura, el principal puerto colombiano sobre el Pacífico, suspendieron sus faenas por el temor de no regresar a sus hogares, aunque luego las retomaron paulatinamente.  El municipio de Olaya Herrera, en Nariño, salió más afectado. Una persona que trabaja en el sector humanitario de la región y pidió anonimato, le dijo a esta alianza que allí muchos viven del dinero que recogen los transportistas al completar un viaje. “Cuando regresan, entra plata a la comunidad, el comercio se mueve y todos se benefician”, dijo. Con el miedo a hacer viajes transportando drogas no volvió a ingresar dinero a las familias.  “Estamos viviendo una situación muy pesada”, dice el párroco Luis Carrillo. “Se empezó a sentir desde noviembre, pero se volvió crítica en febrero”. En coordinación con la Alcaldía, el sacerdote solicitó ayuda al Banco de Alimentos en Bogotá y en marzo llegaron en barco desde Buenaventura 700 canastas con alimentos que se repartieron en la cabecera municipal de Bocas de Satinga y la zona rural. “Obviamente eso no mitiga ni el uno por ciento de las necesidades”, dice el párroco. ¿Quién investiga? Las autoridades de ningún país, desde Estados Unidos hasta Colombia o México, revelan cuánta droga se hundió, ni cuantos de los caídos en bombardeos la transportaban, ni sus nombres. Ni siquiera han informado cómo recogieron la información de inteligencia que los llevó a señalar a esas víctimas como objetivo militar.   Esta alianza periodística envió un cuestionario con estas y otras preguntas al Comando Sur de los Estados Unidos. Este respondió que “por razones de seguridad operativa y protección de las fuerzas, no discutimos inteligencia ni detalles sobre nuestros procesos y planificación operativos”. También dijo su vocero que “no se puede ignorar la amenaza que los narcoterroristas y los cárteles representan para la vida humana. Han intensificado su violencia hasta niveles sin precedentes, yendo más allá de la mera conducta criminal al cometer actos de terror indescriptibles. No son solo sus rivales criminales quienes están en su mira; están librando una guerra contra ciudadanos respetuosos de la ley, comunidades enteras e instituciones gubernamentales, llevando a cabo actos atroces para imponer su voluntad y satisfacer su insaciable ansia de ingresos ilícitos”. Fuentes de la embajada de República Dominicana en Colombia confirmaron a este equipo periodístico que la única información recibida sobre la posible muerte de dos de sus connacionales proviene de una alocución del presidente colombiano Gustavo Petro; sin embargo, no se han iniciado gestiones oficiales para su identificación. Calificaron el asunto como “políticamente sensible”. En Ecuador, el Servicio de Guardacostas de la Armada no ha revelado ningún detalle sobre las operaciones de rescate de posibles sobrevivientes que —según dijo EE. UU— inició tras un bombardeo en el Pacífico el 9 de febrero de 2026, según confirmó un reportero que apoya esta investigación en ese país. En el Pacífico costarricense, las autoridades rescataron dos muertos y un sobreviviente. Los dos fallecidos eran ecuatorianos. Reporteros de esta alianza pudieron confirmar con fuentes de seguridad en Ecuador que uno de ellos, Pedro Ramón Holguín Holguín, tenía un negocio minorista de venta de pescado en Manta, una ciudad costera que es hoy centro de la actividad narcotraficante en el país.  Lograron establecer, además, que la embajada de Ecuador en Costa Rica ayudó con la identificación de los restos, pero sus cuerpos, a la fecha, siguen en una morgue en San José, la capital costarricense.  Casa Macondo, un aliado de esta investigación en Colombia, envió peticiones de información a diversas autoridades. La DIMAR, la autoridad marítima colombiana, aseguró que nadie le reportó que hubo bombardeos en sus aguas territoriales. La Cancillería convocó en noviembre pasado a  una reunión con el Ministerio de Defensa, la Armada y la Dirección Nacional de Inteligencia. El resultado fue que todas las entidades dijeron no tener información oficial más allá de los medios de comunicación. La conclusión escrita, firmada por el Director de Soberanía Territorial Javier Pava Sánchez, fue que “nuestra soberanía no ha sido vulnerada”. Trece días después de esa reunión, el embajador colombiano ante la OEA intervino en el Consejo Permanente para denunciar esos mismos ataques como violaciones al derecho internacional. El 23 de diciembre, Colombia repitió la denuncia en una reunión de emergencia del Consejo de Seguridad de la ONU.  El mismo presidente de Colombia, Gustavo Petro, dijo públicamente que había visitado la casa de un pescador bombardeado el 15 de septiembre, Alejandro Andrés Carranza, en Santa Marta, y había visto que vivía en la pobreza. Denunció estos ataques como ejecuciones extrajudiciales. Además, facilitó una reunión de un abogado estadounidense con los familiares de Carranza para que estos consideraran demandar por daños sufridos, según contó el abogado en cuestión, Daniel Kovalik, a reporteros de esta alianza. Finalmente, Kovalik presentó una denuncia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la OEA, argumentando que la de Carranza fue una ejecución extrajudicial y que por ello Estados Unidos violó la Declaración Americana de los Derechos y Deberes del Hombre.  Los ataques verbales entre los presidentes Trump y Petro, que venían escalando de tiempo atrás, se tornaron álgidos luego de esta declaraciones.  Finalmente, el presidente Petro se reunió con Trump en la Casa Blanca, y las denuncias se acallaron. Fuentes de Cancillería colombiana ahora aseguran que el tema es tan sensible que no lo mencionan, ni dan información al respecto.  Uno de los pedidos de información de Casa Macondo sí fructificó y reveló un efecto de estos bombardeos que había pasado desapercibido: que coincidiendo con los ataques desde el cielo a los botes bajo sospecha, subió el número de disrupciones a  vuelos comerciales en Colombia en 2025. Con información de la Aerocivil (la autoridad colombiana de aviación civil), Casa Macondo estableció que entre enero y julio de 2025 se habían reportado mensualmente entre cuatro y cinco incidentes involucrando a los GPS de los aviones comerciales, un nivel dentro de los rangos esperados para cualquier espacio aéreo. Pero desde agosto, coincidiendo con la víspera del inicio de la campaña de bombardeos, los reportes se multiplicaron por cinco. En el año contabilizó un total de 251 reportes de fallas de GPS y las clasificó como ajenas a sus sistemas. Cerró el expediente sin investigar qué las causaba.  Aerocivil informó que durante 18 vuelos comerciales que volaban en el Caribe norte, los pilotos dieron cuenta de fallas en los GPS de los aviones, al cruzar AMBAS –como se le llama a una coordenada de navegación aérea sobre el mar Caribe, al norte de Colombia, donde convergen las rutas que conectan Bogotá y Medellín con Miami, Nueva York, Santo Domingo y Curazao. La señal permanecía perdida entre ocho minutos y una hora —mientras los aviones cruzaban a alturas de entre 30.000 y 40.000 pies, es decir, entre nueve y doce kilómetros de altura—, y se recuperaba al salir del espacio aéreo colombiano. El GPS siempre se apagó en el mismo lugar. Siempre se volvió a encender cuando el avión se alejó. En uno de los casos reportados por Aerocivil,  a un piloto le fallaron los GPS y luego por otra falla, el transponder —el dispositivo que le dice al radar en tierra dónde está el avión— dejó de transmitir y en la cabina, se encendieron las alarmas del sistema antichoque, como si el suelo estuviera cerca, cuando en realidad iba a miles de pies de altura.  El piloto de la aeronave, que habló con esta alianza periodística pidiendo reserva del nombre, aseguró que se asustó porque nunca le había pasado, pero que los aviones tienen al menos tres sistemas redundantes de navegación, y siempre hay alternativa cuando uno se apaga. “No hubo peligro para los pasajeros”, dijo.  Al suministrar estos registros, la autoridad aérea reconoció que estos episodios constituyen una “afectación a la navegación aérea civil” y los clasificó oficialmente bajo su protocolo de “identificación de peligros” para la seguridad del espacio aéreo. (Ver Historia Aviones comerciales volaron con interferencias coincidentes con los bombardeos de EE.UU a las lanchas) Ataques que socavan la lucha contra el narco Los golpes de misil pueden ser más espectaculares y violentos que la silenciosa interceptación e incautación regular que el presidente Trump venía denigrando como inútil, pero no por ello, más eficaz. Así, mientras Trump celebraba su primer bombazo del 2 de septiembre a la lancha con 11 tripulantes, como un ataque contra terroristas del Tren de Aragua “identificados con certeza” y aseguraba que llevaba “cantidades masivas de drogas”, el vicepresidente aseguró que era el mejor uso y más elevado uso de sus fuerza armadas. El secretario de Estado Marco Rubio, haciendo eco de esta declaraciones el día siguiente, aseguró que interceptar a las lanchas que llevan drogas no había funcionado. “En lugar de interceptarlas, las volamos, siguiendo la orden del Presidente. Y va a pasar de nuevo”, dijo.   Lo que no contaron los dirigentes del gobierno estadounidense es que ese mismo 2 de septiembre ocurrió la Operación Zeus, que sin embargo, no lanzó rayos desde el cielo, como la del bombazo a los 11 tripulantes. En esta Operación Zeus, la Fuerza Aeroespacial Colombiana había detectado una embarcación sospechosa en las mismas aguas del Caribe, y compartió las coordenadas con la Fuerza Aérea dominicana.  Esta última, con la coordinación de la  Fuerza de Tarea Conjunta Interinstitucional del Sur de Estados Unidos (JIATF-S por su sigla en inglés), en la Base Naval Aérea de Key West en Florida, envió a unidades de su armada a interceptarla. Abordaron la embarcación, apresaron a sus dos tripulantes e incautaron 448 kilos de cocaína, entregaron evidencia a un proceso penal y no hubo un solo muerto.  No fue la única. Una investigación del CLIP siguió las interdicciones regulares de lucha antinarcóticos en el Caribe y en el Pacífico que realizaron entidades estadounidenses en cooperación con países europeos y latinoamericanos, entre septiembre de 2025 y febrero de 2026, basándose en informaciones de las fuerzas del orden y de prensa en varios idiomas y países, y consultó con los registros públicos disponibles en la API v3 de Global Fishing Watch y Vesseltracker. Encontró que gracias a esta cooperación internacional, pudieron decomisar, sin disparar un solo tiro mortal, al menos 140 toneladas de cocaína y detener a 160 tripulantes que luego fueron entregados a la justicia. Este rastreo estableció que, coincidiendo con la operación de bombardeos a lanchas, el remolcador Little Girls con bandera de Tasmania, el pesquero griego Ourania A y, el viejo buque de propiedad turca United S, pasaron por el Atlántico cargados de drogas. Ninguno fue volado con misiles. Esperaron a que llegaran a un lugar seguro para inmovilizarlos, incautar la droga que llevaban y detener a sus tripulantes. Es más, la operación contra el Ourania A llevó al arresto de un conocido narco griego.  Las operaciones antinarcóticos regulares y los ataques letales se ejecutaron en las mismas aguas, en las mismas semanas, con coordinación de inteligencia que en varios casos pasaba por los mismos nodos institucionales: el MAOC-N de Lisboa, la Fuerza de Tarea Conjunta Interagencial Sur (JITF-S) de Key West y la DEA. (Ver historia Para los grandes cargamentos, justicia; para los pequeños, bombas). ¿Quién toma las decisiones? ¿Quién ordenó a cuál embarcación volar y a cuál dejar pasar para luego detenerlo civilizadamente? Eso le preguntamos al Comando Sur.  No respondió la pregunta, sino que envió el siguiente comentario: “La Operación Southern Spear se lleva a cabo bajo las órdenes de nuestro Comandante en Jefe para defender el territorio nacional de los Estados Unidos, proteger a los socios regionales y mantener la ley y el orden, impidiendo que los narcoterroristas, los cárteles y su red de cómplices se afiancen en el Hemisferio Occidental mediante una presencia abrumadora. El objetivo de la operación es detectar, desarticular y desmantelar las redes de los cárteles y otras organizaciones transnacionales que el presidente de los Estados Unidos, mediante una orden ejecutiva, ha designado como organizaciones terroristas”. Expertos jurídicos ya han planteado sus inquietudes sobre el significado del término “narco-terrorista”, pero Brian Finucane, asesor principal del Programa de Estados Unidos del International Crisis Group y exabogado de la Oficina del Asesor Jurídico del Departamento de Estado de EE. UU., declaró a esta alianza que los comentarios del ejército estadounidense en respuesta a este reportaje llevan esas inquietudes un paso más allá. “El derecho de la guerra permite la violencia que de otro modo estaría prohibida, pero solo durante un conflicto armado genuino —un umbral que la administración Trump no ha logrado alcanzar, ya que ni siquiera ha identificado contra quién se supone que Estados Unidos está luchando”, dijo. “Más allá de ese problema fundamental, la sugerencia de la administración de que los ‘facilitadores’, vagamente definidos, pueden ser blanco de ataques, suscita aún más inquietudes de que esté violando las reglas de su propio paradigma legal falso”. Mientras la cooperación internacional para la lucha anti-narcóticos se desarrollaba con normalidad y sin dejar muertos en estos seis meses de septiembre a febrero, los múltiples ataques que realizó el gobierno estadounidense dejaron 140 muertos, sin una cantidad de cocaína públicamente incautada y pulverizando las pruebas judiciales que podrían llevar a encontrar a los grandes narcos dueños de las rutas.  De hecho, la Fiscalía de Colombia solo abrió una indagación preliminar en contra del sobreviviente Jonathan Obando Pérez,  según El País América, “pero no prevé convertirla en una investigación formal, pues no tiene elementos para señalar que Obando Pérez haya cometido algún delito en Colombia”. Por eso luego de salir del hospital, quedó en libertad. Una fuente citada por AP de la Fiscalía ecuatoriana también aseguró que “no encontró pruebas suficientes para emprender acciones legales” en contra de Andrés Fernando Tufiño, sobreviviente de un ataque en el Caribe el 16 de octubre.  Por las posibles violaciones a los derechos humanos y al derecho del mar, las autoridades de Reino Unido y Canadá dijeron que no compartirían inteligencia con sus pares de Estados Unidos, según reportó Time. Las fuentes británicas le dijeron en noviembre pasado a esas revista que “los oficiales británicos creen que los golpes militares de Estados Unidos que han matado 76 personas violan la ley internacional” y por ello, suspendieron la cooperación para este tipo de ataques desde octubre. Y fuentes canadienses dijeron que su gobierno “no quiere que su inteligencia ayude a localizar como objetivos a barcos para dar golpes mortales”.  En enero pasado, el ministro de Defensa holandés dijo en Aruba que continuarán las labores de interdicción en la aguas territoriales de su país pero no usarán su barco-estación naval para operaciones relacionadas con la operación Southern Spear (la de los bombardeos) de los Estados Unidos.  “Ningún país europeo, incluida Francia, enviará inteligencia operacional a los americanos en la situación actual si esta se puede usar como base para un ataque militar a un barco”, dijo Dimitro Zoulas, jefe del servicio antidrogas de la policía francesa a Radio Caraibes (RCI). Y Euractiv confirmó con una fuente francesa de seguridad que “es 100 por ciento claro que los europeos no les están dando ninguna inteligencia a Estados Unidos que puede llevar a un golpe (contra los barcos)”.  El gobierno de Colombia había anunciado algo similar, pero un alto funcionario diplomático que habló con CLIP y pidió no revelar su nombre por la sensibilidad del tema, dijo que hoy éste sigue compartiendo normalmente su inteligencia con su par de Estados Unidos, pero no precisó para cuáles operaciones.   A estas críticas, en la respuesta enviada a esta alianza periodística, el Comando Sur respondió: “las fuerzas estadounidenses operan bajo reglas de combate que son consistentes con el derecho marítimo internacional contra actividades que representan una amenaza directa para la seguridad de EE. UU. y la vida de los ciudadanos estadounidenses. Como organización militar a la que se le ha confiado la defensa de nuestra patria, estamos plenamente comprometidos con misiones que apoyan directamente la salud y la seguridad del pueblo estadounidense”. En abril pasado, una coalición de 125 organizaciones civiles de todo el mundo (incluida Airwars, que apoyó con información experta a esta alianza periodística, Human Rights Watch y Amnistía Internacional, entre otras), hizo una petición pública urgente para que los países “inmediatamente dejen o se abstengan de apoyar las ejecuciones extrajudiciales de Estados Unidos en el mar Caribe y el océano Pacífico”. “Debemos recordar que todos estos individuos tienen nombres, familias y vidas que nunca serán iguales”, dijo Jamil Dakwar, director del Programa de Derechos Humanos de ACLU en una audiencia ante la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos de la OEA (CIDH), el pasado 13 de abril.  Esa organización, además de representar a las dos víctimas trinitenses ante una corte federal estadounidense, pidió a la CIDH declarar que los golpes de misil a las embarcaciones violan el derecho internacional y propuso la creación de un grupo especial que investigue las implicaciones que estos han tenido en el hemisferio.  ¿Por qué lo hacen, entonces? Es difícil entender por qué el gobierno Trump se empeña en continuar los bombardeos, a pesar de que no frenan el flujo de drogas.  Incluso, el almirante Nathan Moore, comandante del Guardacostas de Área Atlántica de Estados Unidos, defensor de usar todos los métodos, incluidos los bombardeos, reconoció que no han visto ninguna diferencia notable en el flujo de cocaína. Moore dijo,  después de 21 bombardeos en noviembre de 2025, que no han cambiado ni las rutas de los traficantes, ni el ritmo, ni la pureza de la droga.   Es probable que hayan conseguido que los traficantes dejen de usar algunas rutas, sobre todo aquellas por donde se mueven las lanchas go-fast –de acuerdo con un análisis de InSight Crime, un medio especializado en el crimen organizado—pero la operación no “evitó que los traficantes movieran la cocaína por otros medios”, como apelar más a la ruta por la Amazonía.  Tampoco es difícil para los grandes narcos reemplazar a los muertos por otros hombres empujados a sus redes por la desesperación, la pobreza y el desempleo, pues éstos abundan en las costas latinoamericanas. Atacar al eslabón más débil del multimillonario negocio del narcotráfico no es nuevo. Lo vienen haciendo nuestros países sin resolver el problema desde hace más de 50 años. Esta nueva estrategia de explotar lanchas y matar sospechosos desconocidos lleva esta política al extremo. Los misiles han causado un tremendo dolor y hunden en peores carencias a familias y pueblos pobres que no se pueden defender del majestuoso poder militar estadounidense, ni de su omnipresente retórica.  Además, como se contó aquí, aliena la cooperación internacional y deja más solitario a Estados Unidos frente al crimen.  ¿Por qué entonces persistir en un camino tan riesgoso y estéril por más de ocho meses? “En el gobierno Trump creen en el espectáculo de fuerza por razones que tienen muy poco que ver con interdicción efectiva”, dice Walsh de WOLA. “Quieren impresionar a los ciudadanos, haciéndoles creer que ellos sí que le están poniendo fin al problema terrible del narcotráfico, lo que otros gobiernos no lograron. La profunda crueldad y despreocupación con que ordenan estos asesinatos sistemáticos e intencionales les permite proyectar la naturaleza amenazante de ‘narcoterroristas’ sin nombre. De esta manera asombran a muchos estadounidenses, mientras anestesian la noción de que los funcionarios de Estados Unidos responsables de estos asesinatos deben rendir cuentas ”. La figura del presidente Trump y sus más altos funcionarios de Guerra y Estado, acompañando sus bombardeos con videos explosivos y  triunfales comentarios en redes sociales, orquestan un espectáculo de poder desproporcionado frente a hombres humildes, en su mayoría pobres, y en todo caso, sólo sospechosos de estar transportando drogas.  Como dijo una venezolana esposa de un hombre caído en un bombardeo, “Donald Trump no se puso a pensar; está matando a un padre de familia y no sabe por qué este hombre se montó en ese bote”. ¿Tienes más información sobre esta historia? Escríbenos a investigaciones@elclip.org

The passing of the popular Pichirilo, a great sports talent from Valdecía, has been reported. Our deepest condolences to his family. @elshowderuben

Reportan el fallecimiento del popular Pichirilo, gran talento deportivo Valdeciano. Nuestras palabras de condolencias a sus familiares. @elshowderuben