North American government says it killed 3 crew members linked to a guerrilla group in Colombia
The United States Secretary of Defense, announced this Sunday (October 19, 2025) that the US military destroyed another vessel in the Caribbean Sea.
According to the government of President Donald Trump (Republican Party), the action carried out on Friday (Oct 17) killed 3 crew members linked to the ELN (National Liberation Army), a guerrilla group in Colombia.
There have been 5 offensives since August against Venezuelan boats in the region, under the justification of combating international drug trafficking. This is the 1st attack directed at a Colombian vessel.
In a post on his profile on X (formerly Twitter), Hegseth stated that drug cartels operating in the Caribbean are a threat to US national security, comparing them to Al Qaeda.
“These cartels are the Al-Qaeda of the Western Hemisphere, using violence, murder, and terrorism to impose their will, threaten our national security, and poison our people. The United States military will treat these organizations like the terrorists they truly are — they will be hunted down and killed, just like Al-Qaeda.”said the Secretary of Defense, when releasing a video of the action.
On October 17th, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel affiliated with Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN), a Designated Terrorist Organization, that was operating in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility.
The…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar)
As in previous episodes, the US government did not provide evidence about the vessel’s links to the ELN, nor about the contents of the cargo or the identity of the crew. Trump is critical of President Gustavo Petro (Colombia Humana, left).
TRUMP X PETRO
Just hours before Hegseth’s announcement, Trump harshly criticized Petro, calling him a “illegal drug leader” and suggesting that the US could attack drug producer camps in Colombia.
In a message published on Truth Social, Trump stated that drug production in Colombia had become the “biggest deal” of the country and accused Petro of not acting to combat it, despite subsidies from the USA.
“Petro better close these death camps immediately, or the US will close them for him, and it won’t be nice.”threatened the North American president.
The Colombian president published a response on his website, refuting the accusations and stating that “Mr. Trump, Colombia has never been rude to the United States; on the contrary, it has deeply loved its culture. But you are rude and ignorant about Colombia. Read, as your chargé d’affaires in Colombia did, One Hundred Years of Solitude, and I guarantee you will learn something from solitude.”
“I’m not in the business like you. I’m a socialist. I believe in humanitarian aid and the common good, and the common good of humanity, the greatest of all: life, threatened by your oil. If I’m not a businessman, much less a drug trafficker, there is no greed in my heart. I have never been able to identify with greed.
“A mobster is a human being who embodies the best of capitalism: greed, and I am the opposite, a lover of life and therefore an ancient warrior of life. Greed escapes us, because life is more powerful.”
Leia:
Tensions in South America
Trump’s rhetoric, which mixes the war on drugs with the war on terrorism, has generated increasing tension in South America, especially after the classification of Latin American cartels as “terrorists”.
The use of attacks on boats puts pressure on governments in the region, such as (United Socialist Party of Venezuela, left). Trump, who has already suggested he is willing to even carry out ground operations in Venezuela.
