‘Handcuffed and blindfolded’: Is the US targeting Ecuadorian fishermen?

A growing number of fishermen say US forces are striking their boats as Trump expands his anti-drug campaign.

Jose Hernan Flores, a fisherman from San Mateo, Ecuador, says US forces detained him at sea after destroying his boat [Teresa Bo/Al Jazeera]

Manta, Ecuador – Jose Hernan Flores is still trying to recover from what he describes as a hostile encounter with United States forces at sea.

Flores is a fisherman from the town of San Mateo, along Ecuador’s Pacific coast.

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In March, he was out on the water with his crew of 16, piloting his vessel, La Negra Francisca Duarte II, to chase schools of fish.

Suddenly, a group of military-style drones appeared in the sky. They swooped towards La Negra Francisca Duarte II.

“We saw drones exploding on the ship, and we did not understand what was going on. Two of our sailors were injured,” Flores told Al Jazeera.

As La Negra Francisca Duarte II caught fire, Flores and his crew abandoned ship, escaping onto smaller boats, known as skiffs, used to help with their fishing.

“We jumped on the smaller vessels to try to get assistance,” Flores explained.

But as they approached what appeared to be a nearby tuna vessel, Flores realised its occupants were not fishermen at all. They were soldiers.

“They had beards and had US military uniforms. They handcuffed and blindfolded us. They had drones and all sorts of military equipment,” Flores said.

The soldiers helped treat those injured in Flores’s crew and then handed them over to a navy unit from El Salvador. The fishermen were at sea for at least another week until they were brought ashore. Later, they were deported back to Ecuador.

Flores says his boat, valued at around $400,000, was completely destroyed. He is still paying off the loan he took out to buy it.

His story is one of dozens from Ecuadorian fishermen who claim they too were attacked by the US at sea.

A military-led approach

While the US military has denied responsibility for the sinking of Flores’s boat, the North American country has adopted an increasingly aggressive approach to what it considers to be maritime drug-trafficking.

Since the start of US President Donald Trump’s second term, the Pentagon has carried out dozens of strikes on small vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, many of them lethal.

The Trump administration has argued that such attacks are necessary to combat “narco-terrorism”. But fishermen say they are coming under fire for no discernable reason.

Positioned between the two largest coca-growing regions in the world — Colombia and Peru — Ecuador has become one of the most important transit points for cocaine leaving South America.

It has therefore emerged as a crucial ally in Trump’s campaign against drug-trafficking organisations.

This week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio toured Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in part to generate support for the US fight against criminal groups in the region.

In Quito, Rubio said the Trump administration would seek $45m in additional security funding for Ecuador and deliver more military equipment to President Daniel Noboa’s right-wing government.

He also confirmed that “elite forces” from the US were working with Ecuador to dismantle what he called “terrorist organisations”.

“I think it’s important to point out, for a second, that the groups we are taking on, these are terrorist organisations. These are not just criminal organisations,” Rubio said.

Members of the coastal community of Santa Marianita, Ecuador, protested this month to demand answers about missing fishermen [Teresa Bo/Al Jazeera]

But many in Ecuador are concerned about their country’s coopereation with the US military is affecting communities in the region.

Earlier this month, in the fishing village of Santa Marianita, dozens of people gathered on the coast to demand justice for the fishermen who have been attacked.

Lourdes Mero’s husband and son have been missing for months. The Fiorella, the fishing vessel they were travelling on, disappeared near the Galapagos Islands in January.

Eight of the boat’s 10 crew have been missing ever since. The two survivors had been piloting skiffs to lay bait when they said they lost contact with the Fiorella. They reportedly saw smoke rising on the horizon.

The missing men’s families still do not know whether their loved ones are dead or alive.

“My husband has heart disease, and I don’t know what to do. Please return my family to me,” Mero said during an interview with Al Jazeera.

“We need the eight crew members back. We don’t know where they are. We are asking the government, but nobody tells us anything.”

According to The Washington Post, the operation was part of a covert US programme led by the Cental Intelligence Agency (CIA), targeting vessels suspected of drug trafficking.

But the US has never publicly acknowledged carrying out any attack against the Fiorella.

Fishing communities on the Pacific coast say they are how caught between two threats: US operations at sea and criminal organisations that use ports for drug trafficking.

Cesar Delgado is from the Manta Crew Members Association, a professional group based in Manta, one of Ecuador’s largest hubs for tuna fishing.

He explained that many fishermen are now afraid to go out to sea, in case they are mistaken for drug traffickers and targeted by US forces.

“Eighty percent of the fleet is not at sea but right on the port. Our fishermen are running out of work. People are losing their ships,” Delgado said.

He called on the US government to provide evidence for its allegations that it targeting drug-trafficking vessels, not fishermen.

“If they have proof that there are drugs, they should show it — not sink the boat, which is what they are doing,” Delgado added.

The US has acknowledged intercepting some boats. As recently as Tuesday, US Southern Command, which oversees military operations in Latin America, announced it had intercepted a “floating refueling station” it claims was linked to Los Choneros, an Ecuadorian gang.

After removing the individuals on board, the US military said it proceeded to sink the boat.

In such cases, the US has indicated it transfers suspects back to Ecuadorian authorities. But those detentions may have fallen short of legal standards.

On Saturday, a judge in Ecuador ordered the release of 28 fishermen, ruling there was not enough evidence to keep them in custody. Other cases are currently being investigated.

But critics say the harm goes beyond Ecuador’s fishing communities. As the US expands its security footprint, concerns are likewise growing about the future of Latin American sovereignty under Trump — and Washington’s adherence to the rule of law.

越来越多的渔民表示，随着特朗普扩大禁毒行动，美军正在袭击他们的渔船。

来自厄瓜多尔圣马特奥的渔民何塞·埃尔南·弗洛雷斯称，美军摧毁了他的渔船后，在海上拘留了他。[特蕾莎·博/半岛电视台]

厄瓜多尔曼塔——何塞·埃尔南·弗洛雷斯仍在努力从他所描述的与美国军队在海上发生的敌对遭遇中恢复过来。

弗洛雷斯是厄瓜多尔太平洋沿岸圣马特奥镇的一名渔民。

列表 1/3：鲁比奥在右翼势力在该地区取得胜利后前往厄瓜多尔、哥伦比亚和秘鲁。

美军击沉“与厄瓜多尔犯罪团伙有关”船只（共3艘）之2

美国宣布向厄瓜多尔提供4500万美元安全援助和增派海军舰艇（共3条，此为第3条）

三月份，他带着 16 名船员出海，驾驶着他的船“La Negra Francisca Duarte II”号去追逐鱼群。

突然，一群军用无人机出现在空中，它们俯冲向“黑弗朗西斯卡·杜阿尔特二世”号。

弗洛雷斯告诉半岛电视台：“我们看到无人机在船上爆炸，我们不明白发生了什么事。我们有两名水手受伤。”

当“黑弗朗西斯卡·杜阿尔特二世”号起火时，弗洛雷斯和他的船员弃船逃到被称为小艇的小型船只上，这些小艇以前常被用来帮助他们捕鱼。

“我们跳上一些小船去寻求帮助，”弗洛雷斯解释说。

但当他们靠近一艘看似是金枪鱼渔船的船只时，弗洛雷斯意识到船上的人根本不是渔民，而是士兵。

“他们留着胡子，穿着美国军装。他们给我们戴上手铐，蒙住眼睛。他们有无人机和各种各样的军事装备，”弗洛雷斯说。

士兵们帮助救治了弗洛雷斯船上的伤员，然后将他们移交给萨尔瓦多海军部队。这些渔民在海上又漂流了至少一周才被送上岸。之后，他们被遣返回厄瓜多尔。

弗洛雷斯说，他那艘价值约40万美元的船彻底损毁了。他仍在偿还当初购买这艘船的贷款。

他的遭遇只是众多厄瓜多尔渔民的遭遇之一，他们声称自己也在海上遭到美国袭击。

军事主导的方式

虽然美国军方否认对弗洛雷斯船只沉没事件负有责任，但这个北美国家对它认为的海上毒品走私采取了越来越强硬的态度。

自美国总统唐纳德·特朗普第二个任期开始以来，五角大楼已在东太平洋和加勒比海对小型船只进行了数十次打击，其中许多打击造成了人员伤亡。

特朗普政府辩称，此类袭击对于打击“毒品恐怖主义”是必要的。但渔民们表示，他们遭到袭击却没有任何明显的原因。

厄瓜多尔地处世界两大古柯种植区——哥伦比亚和秘鲁之间，已成为南美洲可卡因最重要的中转站之一。

因此，它已成为特朗普打击贩毒组织的重要盟友。

本周，美国国务卿马可·卢比奥访问了哥伦比亚、厄瓜多尔和秘鲁，部分目的是为了争取各方支持美国打击该地区的犯罪集团。

在基多，鲁比奥表示，特朗普政府将寻求为厄瓜多尔追加 4500 万美元的安全资金，并向丹尼尔·诺博亚总统的右翼政府提供更多军事装备。

他还证实，美国的“精锐部队”正在与厄瓜多尔合作，以瓦解他所谓的“恐怖组织”。

“我认为有必要先指出一点，我们正在打击的这些组织是恐怖组织，而不仅仅是犯罪组织，”鲁比奥说道。

本月，厄瓜多尔圣玛丽亚尼塔沿海社区的居民举行抗议活动，要求就失踪渔民的事件给出答案。[特蕾莎·博/半岛电视台]

但厄瓜多尔许多人担心，该国与美国军方的合作正在影响该地区的社区。

本月初，在圣玛丽亚尼塔渔村，数十人聚集在海岸边，要求为遭到袭击的渔民伸张正义。

卢尔德·梅罗的丈夫和儿子已经失踪数月。他们乘坐的渔船​​“菲奥雷拉号”于1月份在加拉帕戈斯群岛附近失踪。

船上10名船员中有8人至今下落不明。两名幸存者当时正驾驶小艇投放诱饵，据称他们与“菲奥雷拉”号失去联系。据报道，他们看到地平线上升起了烟雾。

失踪人员的家属至今仍不知道他们的亲人是死是活。

“我丈夫患有心脏病，我不知道该怎么办。请让我的家庭回到我身边，”梅罗在接受半岛电视台采访时说道。

“我们需要那八名船员回来。我们不知道他们在哪里。我们问过政府，但没人告诉我们任何消息。”

据《华盛顿邮报》报道，此次行动是美国中央情报局 (CIA) 领导的一项秘密计划的一部分，目标是涉嫌贩毒的船只。

但美国从未公开承认对“菲奥雷拉”号发动过任何袭击。

太平洋沿岸的渔业社区表示，他们正处于两难境地：一方面是美国在海上的军事行动，另一方面是利用港口进行毒品走私的犯罪组织。

Cesar Delgado 来自 Manta Crew Members Association，这是一个总部位于厄瓜多尔最大的金枪鱼捕捞中心之一 Manta 的专业团体。

他解释说，现在很多渔民都不敢出海，怕被误认为是毒贩，成为美军的打击目标。

德尔加多说：“80%的船队不在海上，而是在港口。我们的渔民快没活干了。人们正在失去他们的船只。”

他呼吁美国政府提供证据，证明其指控的目标是贩毒船只而不是渔民。

德尔加多补充说：“如果他们有证据证明船上有毒品，就应该拿出来——而不是像他们现在这样，把船击沉。”

美国已承认拦截了一些船只。就在周二，负责拉丁美洲军事行动的美国南方司令部宣布，他们拦截了一个“海上加油站”，并声称该加油站与厄瓜多尔黑帮“洛斯乔内罗斯”（Los Choneros）有关。

美国军方表示，在将船上人员全部带走后，他们随即击沉了这艘船。

在这种情况下，美国已表示会将嫌疑人移交给厄瓜多尔当局。但这些拘留可能不符合法律标准。

周六，厄瓜多尔一名法官下令释放28名渔民，裁定没有足够的证据继续拘留他们。其他案件目前仍在调查中。

但批评人士指出，损害远不止于厄瓜多尔的渔业社区。随着美国不断扩大其安全影响力，人们也越来越担忧特朗普执政下拉丁美洲的主权前景，以及华盛顿是否会恪守法治。