UN ACCUSES US OF VIOLATING INTERNATIONAL LAW WITH DEADLY CARIBBEAN AND PACIFIC AIRSTRIKES. (PHOTO)

 UN accuses US of violating international law with deadly Caribbean and Pacific airstrikes

The United Nations on Friday accused the United States of violating international human rights law through a series of airstrikes targeting suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific Oceans. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk condemned the operations, calling them “unacceptable” and urging Washington to immediately halt the attacks and launch an independent investigation. He said that under international law, lethal force is only justified as a last resort against individuals posing an imminent threat to life and argued that, based on available information, the people killed in the strikes did not meet that standard. Türk emphasized that even in cases involving alleged criminal activity, the U.S. is obligated to ensure due process and fair trial protections rather than resorting to extrajudicial killings.

The criticism follows a series of military strikes ordered by President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth since September against boats described by the administration as part of counter-narcotics and counter-terrorism operations. U.S. officials said the attacks have targeted vessels linked to designated terrorist organizations and narcotics trafficking routes, resulting in more than 60 deaths. In the most recent operation announced Wednesday, Hegseth said U.S. forces “carried out a lethal kinetic strike” on a drug-smuggling vessel in the Eastern Pacific, claiming it was transporting illegal narcotics. The White House defended the campaign as a national security measure designed to disrupt cartels and prevent drugs from entering the country. The U.N., however, maintained that the U.S. must investigate the killings and uphold its long-standing commitment to the rule of law, warning that the ongoing strikes could amount to unlawful extrajudicial executions.