US to Repatriate Survivors of Drug-Smuggling Submarine Attack, Trump Announces
President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will repatriate two survivors of a strike on a drug-smuggling submarine to their countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia. The attack, which occurred on Thursday, was confirmed by US intelligence to have been loaded with Fentanyl and other illegal narcotics.
According to Trump's social media post, two other individuals were killed in the strike, and the vessel was targeted due to its involvement in narcotrafficking. This marks at least the sixth US strike on ships in the Caribbean Sea in recent weeks, with the previous five resulting in the deaths of at least 27 people in the waters off Venezuela.
The two survivors were rescued by a US military helicopter and transported to a US warship in the Caribbean. Colombian President Gustavo Petro confirmed the detention of a Colombian national on board the submarine, expressing relief that the individual was alive and would be processed according to the law.
Trump's administration has defended the boat attacks as efforts to stem the flow of drugs from Latin America into the US, despite a lack of evidence or details about the vessels or those on board. The President has also authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela and has hinted at potential attacks on Venezuelan soil.
Narco-subs, often homemade and constructed using fibreglass and plywood, have become a popular method for drug smuggling due to their undetectability and ability to be sunk after delivery. The US and other coastal nations have previously intercepted some of these submarines.
However, the strikes have been criticized by UN-appointed human rights experts as extrajudicial executions. Trump's actions and statements have sparked debate and raised questions about the legality and morality of such operations.
