Over the past months, U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to eliminate ‘narco-terrorists’ operating off the shore of Venezuela, accused of smuggling drugs and fentanyl into the United States. The administration has released video after video of unclassified footage of the alleged drug boats being targeted and destroyed.
The death toll of the operation is estimated to be around 66-67 people as of Nov. 5th. Nationals from both Colombia and Venezuela have been killed in the strikes, leading to escalating tensions between governments.
In a recent 60 Minutes interview, President Trump was asked point-blank by Norah O’Donnell if the U.S. was headed to war with Venezuela.
“I doubt it, I don’t think so,” President Trump said. “But they’ve been treating us very badly, not only on drugs. They’ve dumped hundreds of thousands of people into our country that we didn’t want.”
O’Donnell questioned the president on his intentions with Venezuela and asked if ‘Maduro’s days as president were numbered. ’ Nicolás Maduro, the President of Venezuela, is wanted in the U.S. for narco-terrorism.
“I would say yeah, I think so,” President Trump said.
When asked, Trump refused to directly answer whether or not he was actually intending to conduct air strikes on the Venezuelan mainland, but indicated that he would not.
Many legal experts have questioned the legality of the strikes and whether or not they violate international law.
The United Nations Human Rights Chief, Volker Türk, condemned the air strikes and called for an investigation into the strikes. Türk has also called for the U.S. to halt such operations.
“Airstrikes by the USA on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific, allegedly linked to drug trafficking, violate international human rights law and are unacceptable.” Türk posted on X Friday.
House and Senate members have accused the president of dragging the United States into a war with Venezuela and have brought the War Powers Act of 1973 into question.
However, the Trump administration has defended the operations, stating that the 1973 War Powers Resolution does not apply to these operations. The purpose of the War Powers Act is to ‘limit the U.S. president’s ability to initiate or escalate military actions abroad.’
