"Since September, the Trump administration has relentlessly targeted vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific suspected of being used by narco-terrorists to export illicit narcotics to the US killing at least 81 people in more than 20 strikes. The administration has insisted the strikes are legal under the rules of war, arguing that the US is engaged in armed conflict with traffickers, whom it accuses of being in league with Venezuela's autocratic president, Nicolas Maduro, to flood the US with illicit narcotics."
"But only after the Washington Post reported that the first strike on 2 September was followed by a so-called second tap allegedly to comply with an order from Pete Hegseth, the defence secretary, to kill everybody onboard has the issue assumed wider resonance. The follow-up strike reportedly killed two survivors clinging to the side of the vessel. Amid speculation that a war crime or even murder may have been committed, the Republican-led armed service committees in the Senate and House of Representatives"
US forces have repeatedly struck vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific suspected of exporting narcotics, killing at least 81 people in over 20 strikes. The administration contends the strikes are lawful under the rules of war and frames the campaign as armed conflict with traffickers allegedly allied with Venezuela's president, Nicolás Maduro. Most legal experts reject that characterization and argue the US is not at war with an armed group attacking its territory or assets. A Washington Post report alleges a second strike followed an initial attack, reportedly killing survivors, prompting calls for investigation and raising concerns about violations of the laws of warfare.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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