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The US military conducted a strike against drug traffickers in Ecuador, US Southern Command announced on Friday.
“At the order of Secretary of War Hegseth, SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan directed the joint force to support Ecuadorian forces conducing lethal kinetic operations against Designated Terrorist Organizations within Ecuador March 6,” US Southern Command said.
“We are advancing alongside our partners in the fight against narcoterrorism,” General Donovan said.
“I congratulate our joint forces and the Ecuadorian armed forces for the successful operation against narcoterrorists in Ecuador. This collaborative and decisive action is a strategic success for all nations in the Western Hemisphere committed to disrupting and defeating narcoterrorism.” General Donovan said.
The Pentagon also released a statement on the strike.
“Under the leadership of President Trump and Secretary Hegseth, the Department is uniting partners across the Western Hemisphere to detect, disrupt, and destroy designated terrorist organizations that fuel violence and corruption.”
The statement added that the strike came at the request of Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa.
“At the request of Ecuador, the Department of War executed targeted action to advance our shared objective of dismantling narco-terrorist networks. This operation demonstrates the power of coordinated action and sends a clear message: narco-terrorist networks will not find refuge in our hemisphere.”
At the beginning of March, President Noboa announced that his country has entered a new phase in its war against drug traffickers.
A year earlier, he asked for aid from US special forces, other regional powers and Europe, to help him dismantle the drug trade.
“We need to have more soldiers to fight this war,” Noboa told the BBC.
“Seventy percent of the world’s cocaine exits via Ecuador. We need the help of international forces.”
