October 19, 2025
Colombian President Gustavo Petro
Colombian President Gustavo Petro demanded formal explanations from the U.S. government on Saturday after denouncing that a Colombian fisherman was allegedly killed during an air strike carried out by U.S. forces in Colombian territorial waters on September 16.
In a forceful message, the president revealed details of the incident: “The boat attacked on September 16 was Colombian, had a damaged engine and was turned off, presumably in Colombian waters. The person there was a lifelong fisherman, Alejandro Carranza, who has not returned home.” Petro assured that the boat was “adrift and displaying a distress signal with its engine raised.”
The attack, which Washington initially presented as part of its offensive against drug trafficking in the Caribbean, took place in a maritime area under Colombian jurisdiction, according to the national government’s complaint. The family of fisherman Alejandro Carranza, interviewed by RTVC, confirmed that the man went out fishing and never returned.
Petro denounces the murder of a Colombian fisherman at the hands of the Trump administration
Petro was categorical in pointing out the responsibility of the United States: “U.S. government officials have committed murder and violated our sovereignty in territorial waters.” The president emphasized the victim’s innocence: “Alejandro Carranza had no ties to drug traffickers and his daily activity was fishing.”
Given the seriousness of the events, the Colombian head of state alerted the Attorney General’s Office. “I ask you to act immediately. Grant immediate protection to the victims’ families and, if they wish, associate them with the victims of Trinidad and Tobago to initiate legal action in the world and in the US justice system,” Petro said.
Colombia considers that, if these events are confirmed, it would be a serious violation of international law, and the case could be brought before multilateral bodies if a satisfactory response is not received from Washington in the coming days. “We await explanations from the U.S. government,” insisted the president.
“There is no war on smuggling, what there is, is a war for oil.”
The complaint is part of Petro’s recurring criticism of U.S. military deployments in the region, which he has openly described as interventionist and illegal. Recently, the president again warned that the United States intends to turn the Caribbean into a conflict zone: “A new theater of war has opened up: the Caribbean,” he said.
The president has asserted that “the armed aggression of the US is irrational for the fight against drugs but very rational for invasions in the Caribbean.” For Petro, the evidence is clear: “There is no war on smuggling, what there is is a war for oil, and it must be stopped by the world. The aggression is against all of Latin America and the Caribbean.”
The Colombian head of state also stated that the alleged Cartel of the Suns does not exist and is only an excuse to intervene and overthrow governments, as the US intends to do in Venezuela. Similarly, he rejected the possibility of a marine invasion of Bolivarian territory, which he described as a violation of the United Nations Human Rights Commission resolution.
“That is my responsibility, if missiles fall there or, as they announced today, violent activity by CIA agents or marines or missiles begins on the ground against the unarmed civilian population, whether it is linked to drug trafficking or not, it is in contravention of the resolution of the United Nations Human Rights Commission,” he said on October 15.
Source: Telesur