Trump’s USA

The Raids
Attacks on “drug boats” may constitute crimes against humanity

US attacks on small boats alleged to be smuggling drugs violate international law and may constitute crimes against humanity, according to a UN report cited by the BBC.

Over the past year, the US has attacked at least 68 boats in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, outside US waters. More than 220 people have been killed in these attacks.

According to UN Special Rapporteur Ben Saul, the attacks cannot be justified under international humanitarian law, conventions on combating drug trafficking, or international counter-terrorism legislation.

“The attacks constitute extrajudicial killings that violate the right to life,” he says. 

The Border Issue
US sends tens of thousands of migrants to “third countries”

More than 25,000 people have been deported from the US to countries other than their homelands, reports *The Guardian*, citing data compiled by Refugees International and Human Rights First.

Around 20,000 people have been transported across the border into Mexico, while the remaining 5,000 were flown to countries in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Central Asia.

Nika, a 32-year-old who fled the regime in Iran, tells *The Guardian* how she and 17 others were handcuffed and put on a plane without being told where they were going. The destination turned out to be the Central African Republic—a country some of them had never even heard of.

“They never told me they were going to deport me to this country. I know nothing about Africa,” says Nika (not her real name). The US has entered into secret agreements with so-called "third countries" in Africa and Latin America to enable the transfer of migrants there. Human rights lawyers describe the deportations as a show of force by the Trump administration intended to deter migrants and asylum seekers from entering the US.

US threats against the ICC
Sources: US preparing sanctions against the ICC

The Trump administration is preparing sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to two sources familiar with the matter speaking to Reuters.

According to documents seen by the Wall Street Journal, the sanctions would involve a ban on dealings with the ICC, effectively preventing the court from conducting transactions in US dollars.

The administration has previously imposed sanctions on ICC prosecutors and judges, but this would mark the first time the US has targeted the court itself with sanctions.

Washington has previously demanded that the ICC withdraw arrest warrants for Israeli leaders and drop an investigation concerning US soldiers in Afghanistan.

The US State Department has not commented on the reports.