Experts say US strike on drug vessel may have breached international law

NEW YORK, United States (MNTV) – A US strike on a boat in the Caribbean Sea — which the White House says killed 11 drug traffickers — may have violated international human rights and maritime law, legal experts told BBC Verify.

The US is not a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, though the Pentagon has previously said Washington should “act in a manner consistent with its provisions.”

“Force can be used to stop a boat, but generally this should be non-lethal measures,” said Luke Moffett of Queen’s University Belfast, stressing that any aggressive tactics must be “reasonable and necessary in self-defence.” He warned the strike could amount to an “extrajudicial arbitrary killing” and “a fundamental violation of human rights.”

Under Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, countries may resort to force only when under attack and exercising their right to self-defence. But Michael Becker of Trinity College Dublin said the US operation “stretches the meaning of the term beyond its breaking point.”

“The fact that US officials describe the individuals killed by the US strike as narco-terrorists does not transform them into lawful military targets,” he said.

Domestic law also complicates the issue. The US Constitution grants Congress the sole power to declare war, though Article II designates the president as “Commander in Chief of the Army.” Some constitutional experts argue this gives the president authority to authorize strikes against military targets.

However, it remains unclear whether that authority extends to the use of force against non-state actors such as drug cartels.