# Killing Fishermen **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Tags:** trump\ **Created:** [November 14, 2025, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killing-fishermen/1024853 "2025-11-14T17:55:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Showing post:** 13
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2025, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killing-fishermen/1024853/13 "2025-11-14T21:22:49Z")
> [@jebert](#): > > But in looking at it, I didn’t see much discussion of International law and whether destroying these boats is a violation thereof. It was addressed pretty early. 7th post. > [@Mass murder on the high seas (Venezuelan "drug boat")](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mass-murder-on-the-high-seas-venezuelan-drug-boat/1022910/7): > > It was an extrajudicial killing but I don’t think it qualifies as piracy under either [18 USC Chapter 81](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/part-I/chapter-81) or [UNCLOS Article 101(a)(i)](https://www.un.org/depts/los/piracy/piracy_legal_framework.htm) since it isn’t an act by a non-state-affiliated party but was rather an authorized act of the national military force of the offending nation (US Navy). That attack, without provocation, not in self-defense or defense of a third party, and with no other attempt made to divert, disable, or dissuade the boat arguably makes it an undeclared act of war, and potentiall… And in that post was a link: > **[U.S. Military’s Boat Strike Escalates Tensions With Venezuela](https://www.cfr.org/expert-brief/us-militarys-boat-strike-escalates-tensions-venezuela)** > > The Trump administration has ramped up pressure on Venezuela through an unprecedented military deployment and use of force in international waters off its coast. Concerns of further escalation have m… That link included this info: > How have other countries reacted? > > Reactions from leaders in Latin America and the Caribbean [have been mixed](https://apnews.com/article/trinidad-caribbean-us-strike-boat-drugs-f0529291209ffbf4162340df7860ba4c). Mexico’s foreign affairs secretary [stressed](https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/rubio-visits-ecuador-us-military-strike-venezuelan-boat-125258630) the country’s preference for a “peaceful solution of conflicts” during a press conference with visiting Secretary of State Rubio. When Rubio visited Ecuador, President Daniel Noboa [thanked](https://apnews.com/article/rubio-ecuador-venezuela-military-strike-immigration-0bde0bbf862734facbd0df5f5361935b)[him](https://apnews.com/article/rubio-ecuador-venezuela-military-strike-immigration-0bde0bbf862734facbd0df5f5361935b) for the Trump administration’s efforts to “actually eliminate any terrorist threat.” > > While Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar praised the U.S. strike, other members of CARICOM—a trade bloc representing fifteen Caribbean countries—have expressed a desire for an open line of communication with the U.S. government to avoid future surprises. Meanwhile, Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro was more critical of the strike, saying that it “violates the universal principle of proportionality of force and results in murder.” Human rights groups have condemned the strike as an [extrajudicial killing](https://www.hrw.org/news/2025/09/05/trump-threatens-wave-of-targeted-killings-with-caribbean-strike) and called for the White House to provide legal justification. > > Beyond the region, Russia, a staunch ally of Venezuela, [criticized](https://www.newsweek.com/russia-trump-venezuela-drug-boat-strike-war-2124279) what it said was the United States putting “blatant pressure” on Venezuela. China, too, [publicly](https://www.foxnews.com/politics/china-condemns-us-military-buildup-venezuela-coast-foreign-interference-regional-affairs)[condemned](https://www.foxnews.com/politics/china-condemns-us-military-buildup-venezuela-coast-foreign-interference-regional-affairs) the U.S. naval deployment as an “interference of external forces in Venezuela’s internal affairs under any pretext.” There is no “international law” that governs the planet, like a set of laws that would govern a nation or more local jurisdictions. There are treaties that govern relations between countries, and consequences for violating them, but otherwise countries abide by _conventions_ voluntarily. What keeps countries in line is a worry of sanctions or threats of force by other nations, or just a loss of reputation that might affect future relations with other countries. What I quoted above is an example of the kind of consequences that come from these actions. There is no court outside of the United States that has any real authority over those responsible for these killings. --- _[View the full topic](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/killing-fishermen/1024853)._