US-Ecuador security operations face abuse allegations

Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have reported that U.S. forces attacked three Ecuadorian fishing vessels—La Negra Francisca Duarte II, Don Maca, and Fiorella—between January and March 2026. The Fiorella vanished on 20 January in international waters, leaving eight of its ten crew members missing. These assaults, allegedly involving drones and armed personnel, are linked to the U.S. anti-drug operation “Southern Spear” (also referred to as “Lanza del Sur”), which has reportedly targeted over 60 ships and caused more than 200 deaths since September 2025. While the U.S. Department of Defense and Coast Guard deny involvement, reports cited by The Washington Post suggest the CIA may have conducted secret drone attacks near the Galápagos Islands.

Human Rights Watch characterized the joint security campaign as entering a “dangerous phase,” documenting arbitrary detentions, torture, and civilian casualties. During a March operation near the Colombian border, four Colombian farm workers were allegedly subjected to electric shocks, simulated drowning, and mock executions. Survivors of maritime attacks reported being intercepted by English-speaking men in U.S.-marked uniforms, who hooded and handcuffed them before handing them over to the Salvadoran Coast Guard.

In the Manabí region, local fishermen face a dual threat from both aerial strikes targeting suspected “narco-terrorists” and extortion by local cartels such as “Los Choneros” and “Los Lobos.” NGOs and security experts have called on the U.S. Congress to investigate the partnership, warning that such security models could facilitate widespread abuses across Latin America.