"Trump Secretly Struck Ecuadorian Fishing Boats, Evidence of Drug Ties Unclear"

▲ CIA

The attack on Ecuadorian fishing boats earlier this year was part of a top-secret Central Intelligence Agency operation, the U.S. daily The Washington Post reported on the 13th, local time.

A person familiar with the matter told the newspaper that the attacks were part of a classified operation approved by U.S. President Donald Trump under the banner of combating narcotics.

Three incidents involving missing or attacked Ecuadorian fishing vessels occurred near the Galapagos Islands in the Pacific Ocean earlier this year.

In January, the 16-meter fishing boat Fiorella, carrying eight crew members, went missing, while in March, the fishing vessels Negra Francisca Duarte II and Don Maca were each struck by unidentified drone attacks.

Among them, the Negra Francisca Duarte was reportedly attacked within Ecuador's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and the Don Maca was also targeted near the EEZ.

Crew members who managed to return testified that small drones approached their vessels and triggered explosions during the incidents.

They claimed they were subsequently dragged onto other vessels, blindfolded, handcuffed, and transported to El Salvador, where they were repatriated to Ecuador without receiving any explanation.

According to The Washington Post, flight records confirmed that aircraft equipped with special surveillance technology flew from El Salvador toward the stricken fishing vessels at the time of each incident.

The newspaper reported that the aircraft departed from Tennessee in the U.S., arrived in El Salvador, and bore a U.S. registration number that could not be officially tracked, similar to a military aircraft.

In this regard, The Washington Post suggested that the Trump administration may have carried out the attacks as an extension of maritime drug trafficking eradication operations.

The explanation is that the U.S. may have launched a direct covert operation with the cooperation of the Salvadoran government in the Galapagos Islands, which have recently emerged as a hotbed for drug trafficking.

However, no evidence has been found showing that the crews of the attacked vessels were involved in drug smuggling, and the crew members told The Washington Post that they were merely making a living.

The CIA did not respond to inquiries from The Washington Post regarding the matter.

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