Overview
- The State Department’s foreign terrorist organization designation for the so‑called Cartel de los Soles took effect Monday, targeting a network Washington asserts is tied to President Nicolás Maduro.
- The designation criminalizes material support, enables asset freezes and travel bans, and strengthens sanctions leverage, though legal experts say it does not by itself authorize lethal force.
- Senior officials contend the move creates “new options,” and Reuters reports a new phase of operations could begin with covert actions under consideration.
- The Pentagon’s Operation Southern Spear now fields more than a dozen warships and roughly 15,000 personnel in the Caribbean, including the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier group.
- U.S. forces have carried out at least 21 strikes on suspected drug boats since September, killing more than 80 people without publicly disclosed proof of narcotics, as Venezuela rejects the designation as a “ridiculous lie” and multiple airlines suspend flights after an FAA warning.