Overview

• Speaking at the UN, Gustavo Petro said those killed were unarmed “poor young people,” called for proceedings against U.S. officials up to Trump, and suggested some victims may be Colombian.
• Trump used his UN address to warn traffickers he would “blow you out of existence” and repeated claims tying Nicolás Maduro to drug networks, which Maduro denies.
• U.S. forces have carried out three lethal strikes in international waters this month against boats officials say departed Venezuela, with at least 17 people killed.
• UN experts and rights groups have labeled the killings unlawful or extrajudicial, and senators introduced a War Powers resolution as the administration releases little public evidence.
• The operations coincide with a major U.S. deployment of warships, a submarine and F‑35s, Venezuela’s militia mobilization, and a report by Dominican authorities of a large cocaine seizure after a U.S. strike.