Ecuador says it can't find disappeared fishermen allegedly struck by US military
Guayaquil, Ecuador - Ecuador acknowledged the inconclusiveness of its investigation into eight disappeared fishermen in the Pacific Ocean, where US bombings regularly target boats, a document seen by AFP showed.
Last September, President Donald Trump began ordering strikes on boats in the Pacific and the Caribbean, alleging that the vessels were trafficking drugs. The campaign has killed over 200 people to date.
In January, eight Ecuadoran fishermen went missing while aboard the Fiorella, a boat that their families say was set alight by the US military.
Washington denies any involvement, but two surviving crewmembers said they saw drones deployed by English-speaking individuals wearing uniforms that bore the US flag.
The case was brought before the United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances, which in April called on Ecuador to investigate the incident and search for the fishermen.
Responding to the UN in May, Ecuadoran President Daniel Noboa's right-wing administration acknowledged its lack of progress in the search for the missing persons, as well as in the related probe.
"The investigation has identified several critical issues that have hindered its progress," read the document seen by AFP.
For instance, it said, Ecuadoran prosecutors had told the government it lacked "the direct support of the National Police, which limits its investigative capabilities in maritime territory."
Ecuador's armed forces and Navy-controlled port authority are responsible for the search. However, the document stated that there has been no "effective and sustained coordination with these entities."
The message did not mention any American involvement in the incident, but said Ecuador was cooperating with the US to exchange information about the case.
"No official has been willing to meet with us"
AFP spoke with relatives of the missing fishermen, who have repeatedly demanded answers about what happened to their loved ones.
"No official has been willing to meet with us," said Maria Mero, the wife of fisherman Gabriel Mero Delgado.
The mother of four says authorities stopped searching for her husband in February.
"The head of the Coast Guard said to just forget about it, that the boat was lost, and that maybe that happened to them because they were up to no good," Mero added.
She and her children are now living in poverty, having lost the family's sole breadwinner.
None of the missing persons aboard the Fiorella has a criminal record for drug trafficking.
Others have alleged similar run-ins with US forces.
In March of this year, two ships were attacked by drones and intercepted by "soldiers wearing uniforms bearing the US flag," according to attorney Jorge Chiriboga.
In both cases, he said, the fishermen were handed over to the Salvadoran Navy, which returned them to Ecuador. Some of the men, who sustained injuries and burns, were rattled by the incidents and have not returned to sea.
Cover photo: HANDOUT / US SOUTHERN COMMAND / AFP