UN Experts Condemn Deadly US Strikes on Suspected Drug Boats

The US Government has presented legal arguments linking the operations to national self-defence and the fight against terrorist organisations.

United Nations experts have called on the United States to stop military strikes against vessels suspected of carrying drugs in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, warning that the operations amount to unlawful killings rather than legitimate acts of war or self-defence.

At least 223 people have reportedly died during US air strikes at sea over the past year. Since 2 September 2025, the US military has attacked at least 68 vessels in international waters, killing everyone aboard in most recorded cases and leaving some people missing. The boats were allegedly transporting drugs for organisations designated as terrorist groups under US law.

The experts said such designations cannot remove protections guaranteed under international law or turn suspected traffickers into lawful military targets. People accused of criminal activity must be investigated, arrested where possible and brought before a court, rather than killed without evidence being examined through a legal process.

Drug trafficking does not create a battlefield

The US Government has presented legal arguments linking the operations to national self-defence and the fight against terrorist organisations. The UN experts rejected those claims, saying drug cartels and criminal gangs are not conducting armed attacks against the United States within the meaning of Article 51 of the UN Charter.

They also found no armed conflict involving the United States and the people aboard the targeted vessels because there is no sustained military combat between opposing parties. Suspected drug traffickers are civilians accused of crimes, not combatants who may be targeted under the laws of war.

"Calling it war does not make it one," the experts said, stressing that drug trafficking remains a law-enforcement matter governed by international human rights standards on the use of force.

Under those standards, lethal force may be used only when it is strictly necessary and proportionate to protect someone from an imminent threat to life. The experts said the United States has not claimed that the targeted crews posed such a threat and has acknowledged that interception was possible in some circumstances but was not pursued.

Maritime law requires interception, rescue and investigation

International human rights protections continue to apply at sea, while maritime law generally requires suspected drug-smuggling vessels to be handled through law-enforcement procedures rather than military attacks. Narcotics-control treaties and international counter-terrorism rules provide no automatic legal basis for bombing vessels or killing their crews.

The right to life also creates responsibilities after an attack. Authorities must take prompt action to locate missing people, rescue survivors and provide medical assistance to anyone placed in distress by an operation. Reports that additional vessels have disappeared in suspicious circumstances have deepened concerns about the scale of the activity and the fate of people who may have been aboard.

The experts warned that the attacks could constitute crimes against maritime safety, potentially allowing other countries to investigate and prosecute those responsible. Every alleged violation of the right to life must be examined promptly, independently, impartially and transparently, including decisions made throughout military and civilian chains of command.

Families of those killed or missing are entitled to know what happened, while victims and relatives may have a right to compensation, full reparation and credible guarantees that similar operations will not occur again.

Experts call for rights-based action against organised crime

The experts urged other governments not to assist operations that may violate the right to life, including by sharing intelligence or providing military equipment and other assets used to identify or attack vessels.

They recognised that drug trafficking and organised criminal violence can place communities at serious risk, requiring determined action from governments. Such threats can be addressed through stronger policing, international legal cooperation, tighter controls on firearms and coordinated measures against criminal networks.

Public-health programmes, harm-reduction services, education, development initiatives and efforts to prevent drug abuse can also reduce demand and weaken the conditions that allow organised crime to expand. These approaches protect public safety without abandoning due process or treating suspected offenders as military enemies.

The UN experts are in contact with the US Government and have demanded accountability for every unlawful death connected to the maritime strikes.