The US administration had already designated certain Latin American drug cartels as ‘terrorist groups’

US President Donald Trump has secretly ordered the Pentagon to begin using military force against Latin American drug cartels previously labeled ‘terrorist organizations’, The New York Times reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The new presidential directive provides an official basis for the use of the US military in operations against cartels at sea and on foreign soil. The Pentagon has already started drawing up options the military could use in going after such organizations, the sources told the NYT.

It was not immediately clear what the White House, Pentagon, and State Department lawyers said about the directive, the newspaper noted. The suspected cartel members still count as civilians, and their potential elimination by the military raises various legal issues.

Back in February, the Trump administration designated multiple foreign drug cartels and organized crime groups as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs). The list includes major crime syndicates like the Mexico-based Sinaloa Cartel and Jalisco New Generation Cartel. The designations were also slapped on transnational gangs active in the US, including Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), which is composed primarily of Salvadorians, as well as largely Venezuelan Tren de Aragua organized crime groups.

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Last month, the Trump administration added the Venezuela-based Cartel de los Soles on the list, claiming the criminal organization is headed personally by the country’s President Nicolas Maduro and involves other high-ranking government and military officials. Maduro was indicted on federal drug charges by a US court in 2020, during the first Trump term. The Venezuelan president has repeatedly denied the allegations, stating the charges against him were a part of Washington’s effort to overthrow the country’s government.

On Thursday, the US Justice and State Departments announced that Washington was doubling the reward for information leading to the arrest of Maduro to $50 million, while claiming Venezuela’s president has been collaborating with Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel as well.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has challenged the new allegations, asserting that her country has seen no evidence of such ties between her Venezuelan counterpart and the cartels.

Sinaloa

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Mexico has no evidence linking Venezuela’s Maduro to drug cartel: Sheinbaum

Mexico has no evidence linking Venezuela’s Maduro to drug cartel: Sheinbaum

Trump secretly prepares military action against drug cartels – NYT

Trump secretly prepares military action against drug cartels – NYT