Colombian president seeks probe against Trump over deadly Caribbean strikes

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has called for a criminal investigation against U.S. President Donald Trump and other top officials over this month’s deadly strikes on boats in the Caribbean that Washington said were carrying drugs.

Speaking at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Petro denounced the three attacks and accused Trump of criminalizing poverty and migration.

“Criminal proceedings must be opened against those officials, who are from the U.S., even if it includes the highest-ranking official who gave the order: President Trump,” Petro said.

The Colombian leader rejected the Trump administration’s claim that the passengers killed in the first strike were members of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang. Instead, he described them as poor Latin American youths with no other option.

“If those boats carried drugs, as alleged, their passengers were not traffickers; they were simply impoverished young people,” he added.

Petro’s remarks came shortly after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said his government was preparing constitutional decrees to defend the country’s sovereignty against possible U.S. aggression.

According to U.S. officials, the first strike on September 2 killed 11 people. Another on September 16 left three dead, while a third attack last Friday killed three more. Washington said the vessels had departed from Venezuela and justified the operations as part of efforts to curb drug flows into the U.S.

However, critics noted that the administration has yet to explain how the military determined the boats’ cargo or the alleged gang ties of those on board. U.S. security officials told Congress the first boat was struck after it changed course and appeared headed back to shore.

“They said the missiles in the Caribbean were used to stop drug trafficking. That is a lie stated here in this very rostrum,” Petro told the Assembly, questioning whether bombing “unarmed, poor young people” was ever justified.

Maduro has also accused Washington of using drug trafficking allegations as a pretext for a military operation aimed at toppling his government.

Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, restored diplomatic ties with Venezuela after taking office in 2022.