Trump's Actions Against Venezuela: War Crime or Bullying?

Alleged War Crime: The Double Tap Strike

• 🎯 A double tap strike on alleged drug boats is examined, with Reed Brody suggesting it constitutes a war crime if it were a war, or murder if not.
• ⚖️ The laws of war do not apply as the US is not officially at war with drug dealers, making Trump's "war on drugs" a metaphorical conversion.
• 🚫 Even within armed conflict, targeting shipwrecked individuals is illegal under international law and US military manuals.
• 🚨 Outside of armed conflict, killing survivors who pose no threat would be homicide under US law and arbitrary deprivation of life under international human rights law.

Accountability and Shifting Blame

• 👤 Reed Brody discusses potential personal accountability for figures like Pete Hegsth, who may have ordered or failed to prosecute illegal acts.
• 📜 The defense of "superior orders" is invalid when an order is manifestly illegal, a principle established at Nuremberg.
• 🗣️ US congressmen reminded the military of their right to refuse illegal orders, a stance Trump reportedly condemned.

Legal Recourse and Venezuela's Role

• ⚖️ The US has legal authority to interdict drug smugglers and prosecute them, but not to execute people without trial or evidence of imminent danger.
• ⚖️ This practice is compared to actions by former Philippine President Duterte, who faces trial at the International Criminal Court for similar alleged murders.
• 🇻🇪 The actions against Venezuela are framed as bullying and threatening the Maduro regime, rather than combating illegal drugs, as Venezuela accounts for a small fraction of drugs entering the US.

Inconsistent US Actions

• 🤝 A comparison is drawn to a similar strike in October where survivors were rescued and returned home, contrasting with the September strike.
• 🇺🇸 The US pardoned former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez, who was convicted of running a major cocaine network and sentenced to 45 years, highlighting an apparent inconsistency in US drug policy.