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US commandos accompanied and assisted Ecuadorian soldiers on raids targeting suspected cartels.
Two US officials speaking with CBS News confirmed that US special forces were participating in the Ecuadorian operations. They explained that the US soldiers accompanied their Ecuadorian counterparts and provided assistance. The operations targeted sites with suspected ties to Los Choneros.
In March, the US provided intelligence for an anti-narcotics operation. Local witnesses say the Ecuadorian forces targeted a dairy farm without ties to a cartel. The farm workers were kidnapped and beaten by the soldiers.
Under President Donald Trump, the US has stepped up military operations in Latin America against alleged cartel targets.
The US has conducted dozens of strikes on boats in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific, killing over 150 people. Some of the family members of the victims have claimed that the people killed by the US were fishermen without ties to cartels.
Trump also ordered the military to attack Venezuela and capture President Nicolas Maduro. Maduro is now facing drug and gun changers in the US.
Last month, Washington announced a new coalition of Latin American states dubbed “Shield of the Americas.” Trump said members of the bloc will receive military support for anti-cartel operations. The Department of War had dubbed the military activity in Latin America “Operation Total Extermination.”
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