Manta, Ecuador – Jose Hernan Flores continues to recover from what he describes as a hostile encounter with United States forces at sea.
Flores is a fisherman from San Mateo, a town along Ecuador’s Pacific coast.
In March, Flores was at sea with his crew of 16 aboard the vessel La Negra Francisca Duarte II, chasing schools of fish.
Suddenly, military-style drones appeared and swooped toward the vessel.
“We watched drones explode on the ship and did not understand what was happening. Two of our sailors were injured,” Flores told Al Jazeera.
As the vessel caught fire, Flores and his crew abandoned ship, taking refuge on smaller fishing skiffs.
“We boarded the smaller vessels seeking assistance,” Flores explained.
However, as they approached what they believed to be a nearby tuna vessel, Flores realized the occupants were not fishermen but soldiers.
“They wore beards and US military uniforms. They handcuffed and blindfolded us. They were equipped with drones and other military gear,” Flores said.
The soldiers treated the injured crew members before handing them over to an El Salvadoran navy unit. The fishermen remained at sea for at least another week before being brought ashore and subsequently deported back to Ecuador.
Flores says his boat, valued at approximately $400,000, was completely destroyed. He continues to repay the loan used to purchase it.
His story is one of dozens from Ecuadorian fishermen who claim they too were attacked by US forces at sea.
A military-led approach
While the US military has denied responsibility for sinking Flores’s vessel, the United States has adopted an increasingly aggressive stance against what it considers maritime drug-trafficking.
Since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, the Pentagon has conducted dozens of strikes on small vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, many of them lethal.
The Trump administration argues such attacks are necessary to combat “narco-terrorism.” Fishermen, however, say they are coming under fire without clear justification.
Positioned between the world’s two largest coca-growing regions — Colombia and Peru — Ecuador has become one of the most important transit points for cocaine leaving South America.
It has therefore emerged as a crucial ally in Trump’s campaign against drug-trafficking organizations.
This week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio toured Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, partly to generate support for the US fight against criminal groups in the region.
In Quito, Rubio said the Trump administration would seek $45 million in additional security funding for Ecuador and deliver more military equipment to President Daniel Noboa’s right-wing government.
He also confirmed that US “elite forces” were working with Ecuador to dismantle what he called “terrorist organisations.”
“I think it’s important to point out that the groups we are confronting are terrorist organisations, not merely criminal groups,” Rubio said.
Missing fishermen
However, many in Ecuador are concerned that their country’s cooperation with the US military is affecting coastal communities.
Earlier this month, in the fishing village of Santa Marianita, dozens gathered on the coast to demand justice for attacked fishermen.
Lourdes Mero’s husband and son have been missing for months. The fishing vessel Fiorella, on which they were traveling, disappeared near the Galapagos Islands in January.
Eight of the boat’s 10 crew have been missing ever since. The two survivors, who had been piloting skiffs to lay bait, reported losing contact with the Fiorella and reportedly saw smoke rising on the horizon.
The families of the missing men still do not know whether their loved ones are dead or alive.
“My husband has heart disease, and I don’t know what to do. Please return my family to me,” Mero said in an interview with Al Jazeera.
“We need the eight crew members back. We don’t know where they are. We are asking the government, but nobody tells us anything.”
According to The Washington Post, the operation was part of a covert US programme led by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), targeting vessels suspected of drug trafficking.
But the US has never publicly acknowledged carrying out any attack against the Fiorella.
A call for evidence
Fishing communities on the Pacific coast say they are caught between two threats: US operations at sea and criminal organizations that use ports for drug trafficking.
Cesar Delgado is from the Manta Crew Members Association, a professional group based in Manta, one of Ecuador’s largest tuna fishing hubs.
He explained that many fishermen now fear going to sea, worried they might be mistaken for drug traffickers and targeted by US forces.
“Eighty percent of the fleet is not at sea but in port. Our fishermen are losing work, and people are losing their ships,” Delgado said.
He called on the US government to provide evidence for its allegations that it is targeting drug-trafficking vessels, not fishermen.
“If they have proof of drugs, they should show it — not sink the boat, which is what they are doing,” Delgado added.
The US has acknowledged intercepting some boats. As recently as Tuesday, US Southern Command, which oversees military operations in Latin America, announced it had intercepted a “floating refueling station” allegedly linked to Los Choneros, an Ecuadorian gang.
After removing the individuals on board, the US military said it sank the vessel.
In such cases, the US has indicated it transfers suspects back to Ecuadorian authorities. However, those detentions may have fallen short of legal standards.
On Saturday, an Ecuadorian judge ordered the release of 28 fishermen, ruling there was insufficient evidence to justify their detention. Other cases are currently under investigation.
However, critics say the harm extends beyond Ecuador’s fishing communities. As the US expands its security footprint, concerns are also growing about the future of Latin American sovereignty under Trump and Washington’s adherence to the rule of law.
