"The tiny Caribbean island nation of Barbados - with a population roughly the size of Anchorage, Alaska, or Lincoln, Nebraska - might not be the country one would first imagine taking the lead to stand up to U.S. military actions and ambitions in the region. But as the Trump administration continues to attack boats, first in the Caribbean Sea and now in the Pacific, leaders in Barbados have been vocal."
""As a small state, we have invested tremendous time and energy and effort in establishing and maintaining our region as a zone of peace," Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley said at a conference in late October. "Peace is critical to all that we do in this region, and now that peace is being threatened, we have to speak up.""
"U.S. officials say these boats are carrying dangerous drugs like fentanyl and cocaine to the United States. They say the people killed on these boats are drug traffickers. They provide no evidence for these claims, and in fact, administration officials have also admitted that the military doesn't identify the individuals on the boats before hitting them. Ben Saul, the UN Special Rapporteur for the protection of human rights while countering terrorism, has called the attacks a " crime against humanity.""
Barbados has publicly criticized a growing U.S. military presence and strikes on boats in the Caribbean and Pacific. The USS Gravely visited Trinidad and Tobago on October 26 for joint exercises near Venezuela. More than 18 vessels have been struck, and at least 70 people have been reported killed as of November 7. U.S. officials claim the boats carried fentanyl and cocaine but have supplied no evidence and acknowledge individuals are not identified before attacks. UN Special Rapporteur Ben Saul labeled the strikes a " crime against humanity," and families report victims were fishermen.
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