Global watchdog condemns US airstrikes in Caribbean waters

The Global Commission on Drug Policy (GCDP) is warning that a recent wave of US airstrikes on small boats across the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific represents a dangerous expansion of the American drug war — one that violates international law and risks normalising extrajudicial killings.

The strikes, which began in early September, have reportedly killed more than 80 people. They are part of “Operation Southern Spear,” a U.S. campaign that intensified under the Trump administration and uses warships, aircraft and special-operations units to target vessels Washington claims are tied to drug trafficking.

A number of US vessels have docked in US Virgin Islands waters and have carried out operations in Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela and along major trafficking routes in the eastern Pacific near Colombia and Ecuador. While the U.S. argues the vessels were involved in illicit trafficking, critics say the government has provided little evidence to justify lethal force at sea, especially outside any armed conflict.

The United Nations’ human rights chief, Volker Türk, has condemned the strikes, stating that they “find no justification in international law” and should cease immediately. He emphasised that lethal force is allowed only when there is an imminent threat to life — a standard that appears unmet in these incidents.

The GCDP says the maritime strikes reflect a wider pattern of punitive and militarised drug policies that have failed for decades. Their recent report notes that billions are spent globally each year on enforcement-heavy approaches, yet drug use and trafficking persist while communities face increased violence, rights abuses and instability.

Latin American leaders have also voiced alarm, warning that foreign military force in the region risks repeating a long history of intervention with little benefit to public safety. Former Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos said the ongoing strategy shows that “only organised crime wins” when drug control relies on force rather than reform.

The GCDP is urging the United States to halt the strikes, conduct independent investigations into all deaths, and adopt genuine reforms: decriminalisation, harm reduction, treatment services, and development-focused efforts that address the root causes of the drug trade. They argue that meaningful progress on drug-related harms can only come from evidence-based health and social policies — not expanding the use of deadly force at sea.