source: El País (via CEPR: Center for Economic and Policy Research)
A global coalition of 125 organizations is issuing an urgent public appeal to all states to immediately cease all forms of support, active or passive, for the United States’ campaign of extrajudicial killings in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. Since September 2025, the U.S. armed forces have killed more than 175 people aboard small boats in operations that the Trump administration characterizes as attacks against “narco-terrorists.” The international outcry underscores a shift from directly condemning U.S. actions to also holding third-party countries accountable for their role in these deadly attacks.
The coalition, which includes human rights groups, humanitarian organizations, drug policy advocates, and veterans’ groups, argues that these attacks constitute extrajudicial killings under international law. Legal experts and civil society say that because the deaths occur outside of any recognized armed conflict and without due process, they violate the fundamental right to life. Furthermore, the targets are often individuals only suspected of drug trafficking, which does not meet the legal threshold of an “imminent threat” or an “armed attack” required to justify the use of lethal military force.
“We are witnessing a continuation and a truly worrying normalization of these attacks against vessels,” warns Annie Shiel, US director of the Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), the organization behind this statement, to which EL PAÍS has had access. “The United States is committing extrajudicial killings or murders, plain and simple.” Shiel believes it is imperative that states permitting these illegal attacks understand they must stop facilitating them; otherwise, they risk facing legal responsibility under international law.
According to this interpretation, a state can be held responsible if it provides aid or assistance that facilitates the commission of an internationally wrongful act by another state. Sources indicate that the United States relies heavily on security cooperation, intelligence sharing, and access to military bases in the region to identify and track vessels. Any state that provides such logistical or operational support can be legally considered an accomplice if it has knowledge of the circumstances of the attacks.
The coalition statement argues that, given the public nature of the U.S. campaign and the blatant lack of legal justification, third-party states can no longer plausibly claim “ignorance” of the risks associated with their support. While some key security partners, such as the U.K., the Netherlands, Canada, and Colombia, have reportedly stopped sharing intelligence related to these attacks to avoid complicity, others have deepened their cooperation.
Recent reports identify several nations that continue to provide critical support. The Dominican Republic has confirmed its cooperation, assisting in the location of vessels and granting the United States expanded access to its air bases. Trinidad and Tobago has also increased its assistance, including the installation of a new U.S. radar system and allowing the transit of military aircraft. Furthermore, the newly formed Shield of the Americas coalition brings together 17 states, including Argentina, Costa Rica, and Paraguay, in a U.S.-led effort to coordinate military pressure against the cartels — a move that critics fear will further institutionalize these extrajudicial killings.
The humanitarian impact of these operations is devastating local coastal communities. Families are left without news of their loved ones, and in some cases, human remains have washed ashore. The coalition warns that the U.S. administration has signaled its intention to escalate these attacks, potentially expanding them to include ground incursions, as it has already done in Ecuador.
The 125 signatories represent a broad geographic range, with organizations from countries including Albania, Brazil, Lebanon, Nigeria, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. Prominent members include Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), along with specialized groups such as the Veterans Action Council and the International Drug Policy Consortium. This diversity reflects a growing international consensus that the normalization of these attacks has to be undone.
