"The paper reported that US forces hit the targeted boat once, then hit it again the second strike killing two survivors clinging to the wreckage. According to the Post, the defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, had issued a verbal command to kill them all. Now that incident is under congressional scrutiny, with even some Republicans uneasy about what appears to be a clearcut case of a war crime."
"The defence department's own Law of War manual forbids precisely this kind of action, spelling it out in black and white on page 448: Members of the armed forced and other persons who are wounded, sick or shipwrecked, shall be respected and protected in all circumstances. Not that you should need a manual to tell you that. The law of the sea demands that you rescue those at risk of drowning; basic human decency demands that you don't fire on them."
US military strikes on small boats in international waters have killed at least 87 people across 22 strikes on vessels alleged to carry illicit narcotics in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. One recent strike killed four people and followed months of similar operations. An investigation revealed that on 2 September US forces struck a targeted boat twice, with the second strike killing two survivors clinging to wreckage, and that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly issued a verbal order to kill them. The incident faces congressional scrutiny amid arguments over legality, Law of War prohibitions, and maritime rescue obligations.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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