Gustavo Petro (AP)
Colombian President Gustavo Petro on Tuesday called for a criminal investigation against US President Donald Trump and American officials linked to recent deadly military strikes on boats in the Caribbean Sea. The United States has said the boats were carrying drugs, Speaking at the united nations general assembly, Petro criticised the strikes and accused the Trump administration of criminalising poverty and migration. He urged legal action against those responsible, including “the highest-ranking official who gave the order: President Trump,” reported news agency AP.The attacks, which took place between September 2 and 20, resulted in 17 deaths, according to US officials. The first strike on September 2 reportedly killed 11 people. Two more strikes on September 16 and 20 killed three individuals each. US authorities claim the vessels had departed from Venezuela and were linked to drug trafficking and the Venezuelan criminal group Tren de Aragua.Petro rejected those claims. “Criminal proceedings must be opened against those officials, who are from the US, even if it includes the highest-ranking official who gave the order: President Trump,” he said, asserting the passengers were not gang members. “They were simply poor young people from Latin America who had no other option,” as quoted by the agency. He also dismissed the US justification of the strikes as part of anti-drug efforts. “They said that the missiles in the Caribbean were used to stop drug trafficking. That is a lie stated here in this very rostrum,” Petro said, hours after Trump’s address to the Assembly. “Was it really necessary to bomb unarmed, poor young people in the Caribbean?”Details about the strikes remain limited. US officials briefed Congress that the first boat was fired upon after it changed course and headed back to shore. The Trump administration has not elaborated on how it confirmed the alleged gang affiliations or drug cargo.Meanwhile, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has accused Washington of using drug trafficking allegations as a pretext for a military operation aimed at destabilising his government. He has announced upcoming constitutional decrees to defend Venezuela’s sovereignty in case of further US action.Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, restored diplomatic ties with Venezuela after assuming office in 2022.
