Lizbeth Perez looks fearful as she gazes out onto the postcard-perfect fishing bay of Taganga, on Colombia's Caribbean coast, recalling the moment she last spoke to her uncle in September.
He was a kind man, a good person, a friend. A good father, uncle son. He was a cheerful person. He loved his work and his fishing.
Alejandro Carranza said goodbye to his family early on the morning of 14 September, before going out on his boat as usual, his cousin Audenis Manjarres told state media. He left from La Guajira, a region in neighboring Venezuela, he said.
The next day, US President Donald Trump announced that a US strike in international waters had targeted a vessel which had departed Venezuela, and that three people he described as extraordinarily violent drug-trafficking cartels and narco-terrorists were killed.
Ms. Perez has not seen her uncle since. His five children are missing their dad, she says, and the family is still waiting anxiously for answers, not knowing if he was even on the boat hit in the strike.
The truth is we don't know it was him; we don't have any proof that it was him, apart from what we saw on the news.
The US began striking alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean in September, with the campaign expanding to the Pacific. So far, the strikes have resulted in the deaths of 83 people across at least 21 operations.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth states that the campaign aims to remove narco-terrorists from our hemisphere and secure the US from the drugs harming American citizens.
The Trump administration justifies these actions as necessary self-defense measures aimed at preventing drugs from infiltrating the US.
However, the strikes have faced condemnation from several regional countries and raised concerns over possible breaches of international law.
Colombia's President Gustavo Petro has criticized the strikes, asserting that Colombian citizens were aboard the boat targeted on 15 September, expressing skepticism as to whether Carranza was among the deceased.
In response to Petro's comments on civilian casualties, the White House urged him to publicly retract his baseless and reprehensible statement. Trump has countered with accusations against Petro, suggesting he encourages drug production and has even threatened to cut off US aid to Colombia.
Amidst these tensions, Lizbeth Perez argues for accountability and transparency from the US government, condemning the extrajudicial killings amid their campaign against drug trafficking.
What the president of the United States is doing isn't right. He has to prove if they are or aren't [trafficking], Lizbeth remarked, reflecting on the uncertainty endured by her family.
As the situation continues to develop, the fishing community in Taganga grapples with increasing fears for their safety amid heightened military operations.
