Caption: This combination of screen grabs images from a video posted by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on his X account on October 22, 2025, shows what Hegseth says is US military forces conducting a strike on a vessel being operated by a “designated terrorist organization conducting narco-trafficking” in the Eastern Pacific Ocean on October 21, 2025. Photo via AFP
THE Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has expressed its “deep concern” regarding reports of lethal operations against non-state vessels or boats conducted by the United States in the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific Ocean since early September.
The IACHR said that these operations have allegedly resulted in the deaths of a high number of persons and is urging Washington to ensure that all security operations, including those carried out beyond its borders, “are consistent with international human rights obligations, particularly regarding the protection of the right to life, the use of force, due process guarantees, and accountability mechanisms.”
The IACHR said as a result, it is calling on the United States to refrain from employing lethal military force in the context of public security operations, ensuring that any counter-crime or security operation fully complies with international human rights standards; conduct prompt, impartial, and independent investigations into all deaths and detentions resulting from these actions; and adopt effective measures to prevent recurrence.
Last week, President Donald Trump designated Cartel de los Soles, a group he claimed is controlled by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, as a foreign terrorist organization. Pundits say the designation would authorise Trump to impose new sanctions on Maduro and his associates.
Maduro has flatly denied any connection with Cartel de los Soles, claiming instead that Trump is “fabricating” a war against him.
In what the US military has labeled as “Operation Southern Spear,” the US military has assembled over a dozen warships and 15,000 troops in the Caribbean Sea.
The US military has carried out several hits on vessels, killing more than 80 people, including two Trinidad and Tobago nationals, without providing any proof that they were engaged in drugs.
The United Nations UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also strongly condemned the airstrikes carried out by the United States against alleged drug trafficking boats in the Caribbean and Pacific.
Volker Türk said in a statement that the strikes “violate international human rights law”, demanding that they be stopped immediately.
The IACHR said that according to publicly available and official information, since early September approximately 15 air and naval operations have reportedly been conducted by United States forces against boats which US authorities allege are linked to transnational criminal organizations, resulting in more than 80 people killed and three survivors.
It said that the first of these actions, announced on September 2, reportedly involved the destruction of a boat off Venezuelan waters, resulting in the death of 11 people.
On September 15, another operation was announced, with reports indicating three deaths, followed by a further strike on September 19 in the Caribbean, also leaving three people dead. Subsequent incidents were reported in early October, including one around October 3, which allegedly caused four deaths, and another between October 16 and 17 involving a low-profile vessel in the Caribbean, resulting in two deaths and two survivors later transferred to United States custody. Two strikes took place in the Eastern Pacific on October 22 with a total of five deaths.
One of the deadliest incidents occurred on October 27 in the Eastern Pacific, when the destruction of four boats reportedly caused fourteen deaths and one survivor who was later rescued by Mexican authorities. Additional information suggests that another strike took place on October 29, resulting in four deaths.
The strikes continued in November. On November 1 a strike in the Caribbean reportedly killed three individuals. A further operation on November 4 in the Eastern Pacific reportedly resulted in two deaths, and two then separate strikes on 9 November in the Pacific reportedly killed six persons.
By November 10, U.S. forces announced strikes on two additional vessels in the eastern Pacific, resulting in six deaths and raising publicly reported total fatalities to more than 83 persons.
The IACHR, which is a principal and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), while acknowledging the seriousness of organized crime and its impact on the enjoyment of human rights, recalls that states are obliged to respect and ensure the right to life of all persons under their jurisdiction.
According to the Inter-American jurisprudence, this duty extends to situations when state agents exercise authority or effective control, including extraterritorial actions at sea.
“When lethal force is used by security or military personnel outside national territory, States have the obligation to demonstrate that such actions were strictly lawful, necessary, and proportionate, and to investigate, ex officio, any resulting loss of life.
“These obligations persist irrespective of where the operations occur, or the status attributed to the individuals affected. Likewise, persons under state control must always enjoy full respect for due process and humane treatment,” the IACHR said. (CMC)
