Two Ecuadorian fishing vessels sunk and 39 crew members detained by US linked to Los Choneros
US military forces intercepted and sank the Conquista 2 and the OM2, linking them to the narco-terrorist group Los Choneros. Their families deny the charges and demand their release.
Pacific interception reignites controversy over US anti-drug offensive
Two Ecuadorian vessels with commercial fishing permits were intercepted by US military forces in international Pacific waters, according to elpais.com. The Conquista 2 was sunk following an explosion; the OM2 was located days later. In total, approximately 39 crew members remain in custody, accused of supplying fuel to boats laden with cocaine on behalf of the criminal organisation Los Choneros. The relatives of the detainees reject the allegations and demand their immediate release.
The sinking of the Conquista 2 and the OM2 operation
The interception of the Conquista 2 was recorded in a video distributed on X by the US Southern Command. According to the statement accompanying the images, the vessel functioned as a "floating fuel resupply station" for drug-trafficking boats. "Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was operating in support of the violent narco-terrorist organisation Los Choneros," the official text states. Ecuadorian authorities also participated in the operation, which resulted in the detention of 17 suspects.
A similar operation was carried out this same week to locate the OM2 and place its 22 crew members in custody. Southern Command stated that all those arrested were evacuated without incident and that their custody would be handed over to Ecuadorian authorities. Ecuador's Navy, for its part, indicated that it expected the arrival of 28 crew members from both vessels at the port of Manta, aboard a coast guard vessel.
Los Choneros designated as a foreign terrorist organisation
Los Choneros is one of Ecuador's largest and most violent criminal groups. The Trump administration designated them last year as a foreign terrorist organisation. US authorities contend that the intercepted vessels were part of that group's logistical chain.
"This interdiction cuts off a critical node in the traffickers' logistical chain and advances the objectives of the Americas Coalition Against Cartels (A3C)," Southern Command stated in its statement. The operation is part of the strategy that Trump describes as an "armed conflict" against Latin American cartels, which has pushed the US anti-drug offensive to the extreme of bombing vessels supposedly used to transport drugs. In more than 60 missile strikes against boats, approximately 220 people have died, mostly in the Pacific.
Ecuador, transit country under Washington's watch
Ecuador is under the microscope of the Trump administration over its growing role in drug-trafficking networks: from its coasts depart speedboats laden with drugs, and from its ports sail containers with illicit cargo to other countries.
On 20 August, the US Department of the Treasury sanctioned eight individuals and seven companies based in Ecuador, which it links to Los Choneros and Los Lobos. According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the network used fishing companies as a front to facilitate the transfer of cocaine from South America to Mexico, from where the drug was smuggled into the United States.
Families protest in Manta and deny links to drug trafficking
The relatives of the crew members of the Conquista 2 and the OM2 maintain that they are merely fishermen earning a living at sea. This Thursday and Friday they protested in front of the Port Authority of Manta to demand information about the whereabouts of the detainees and to call for their release. "If there was a crime, they would not have to bomb the evidence," one family member declared. The relatives were hoping the fishermen would arrive this Friday at the port of Manta.
Background: attacks on Ecuadorian fishing vessels and the shadow of the CIA
The case comes amid a series of attacks on Ecuadorian fishing vessels that between January and March this year remained without public explanation. At least three boats that had departed from ports in Manabí were attacked by drones during that period. Washington denied for months having participated in those operations, and the Ecuadorian Government refrained from commenting.
An investigation published by The Washington Post on 13 August opened a new line on what happened. The US newspaper maintains that the attacks on Ecuadorian fishing vessels near the Galápagos would have been part of a CIA "covert action" programme. A source cited by the newspaper linked the programme to drone strikes against the fishing vessels Negra Francisca Duarte II and Don Maca, as well as the disappearance of the Fiorella and its eight crew members. The investigation also found indications linking an aircraft operating from El Salvador to the incidents.
The CIA has not confirmed the existence of the operation. The Pentagon and the US Coast Guard have denied participating in the attacks on the fishing vessels. The detention of the crew members of the Conquista 2 and the OM2 opens a new front in the confrontation between Washington's anti-drug offensive and Ecuadorian fishing communities that find themselves caught in the middle of that conflict.
Source: Google News EC — Crime