Colombia‘s president, Gustavo Petro, has accused the U.S. of “murder” after the U.S. military struck a vessel last month.
Petro accused Washington of violating the South American country’s sovereignty and of killing a Colombian fisherman, named by the president as Alejandro Carranza. Colombian media reported Carranza was aboard a boat targeted by U.S. forces on September 15.
President Donald Trump has framed a run of U.S. strikes in the Caribbean since early September as a campaign against drug trafficking into the U.S. At least 27 people had been killed in the strikes, according to the administration’s numbers, before the U.S. targeted another alleged drug vessel on Thursday.
The September 15 strike was the second attack acknowledged by the administration. Petro said Carranza had “no ties to the drug trade.”
“The Colombian boat was adrift and had its distress signal up due to an engine failure,” Carranza said. “We await explanations from the US government.”
This is a breaking story. More to follow.
