Family of Colombian fisherman killed in US military ‘drug boat strike’ in Caribbean files first formal complaint

According to the complaint, the US carried out an extrajudicial killing in violation of Carranza’s human rights.

The complaint, filed by US human rights lawyer Dan Kovalik on behalf of the family, names Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth as the perpetrator. The complaints also claim that Hegseth’s conduct was “ratified” by US President Donald Trump.

Against international law

“From numerous news reports, we know that US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth was responsible for ordering the bombing of boats like those of Alejandro Carranza and the murder of all those on such boats,” ABC News, quoting the complaint, reported.

“Secretary Hegseth has admitted that he gave such orders despite the fact that he did not know the identity of those being targeted for these bombings and extra-judicial killings.”

According to Kovalik, Carranza’s family “has no recourse to adequate and effective remedies in Colombia to obtain redress for the injuries they have suffered due to the actions of the United States.”

“These killings are against international law. They are against US law. We want this to stop, and we think this is at least a first step to having that happen,” Kovalik told CNN.

According to ABC News, while the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights can investigate the complaint and issue findings, any ruling it makes would not be legally binding on the US.

In October, Colombian President Gustavo Petro had identified Carranza as one of the civilians killed in the US strikes.

According to the Colombian President, the US strike, the second such operation since the Trump administration started targeting alleged drug-trafficking vessels, had targeted a Colombian fisherman and “presumably” occurred in Colombian waters. He also claimed that the 42-year-old fisherman had no connection to drug trafficking.

US strikes on drug boats

Since September 2, the US military has conducted at least 21 airstrikes on vessels in the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific Ocean, in which 22 boats were targeted, and 83 people were killed.

While the Trump administration has insisted that the airstrikes were targeted at drug traffickers, it has so far not provided any evidence to prove it.

Double-tap strike under scanner

The complaint, the first since the airstrikes, also comes at a time when the Trump administration is on the backfoot over revelations that the US military carried out a second hit on two survivors of a boat strike on September 2.

The Washington Post had reported that Pete Hegseth, the US Defense Secretary, had issued a verbal order to “kill everybody.” The Trump administration had initially denied the reports, but later admitted that the second strike did happen.

The White House identified Navy admiral Frank M. “Mitch” Bradley, the commander of US Special Operations Command, as the officer who ordered a controversial second strike.

Many, including legal experts, have argued that the second strike amounted to a violation of US military and international laws, and added that it could be tried as a case of war crime.