CARICOM leaders pressed on U.S. deadly strikes in Caribbean

Jul 09, 2026 News

…St. Lucia PM says America provided no information; T&T declines to label deaths “murders”

(Kaieteur News) – Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders on Wednesday adopted a cautious stance when questioned about deaths possibly linked to the United States military action in the Caribbean Sea.

For months the U.S. military carried out action targeting alleged drug smugglers in the region. The regional bloc previously stated that it required more time to ascertain the facts before issuing a full response on the military action. At the closing media conference of the 51st Regular Meeting of CARICOM Heads of Government in St Lucia, Al Jazeera senior correspondent Josh Rushing questioned the CARICOM leaders about whether the U.S. has immunity to kill citizens in Caribbean territories for alleged crimes. He also directed a question to CARICOM Chair and Prime Minister of St Lucia Philip J. Pierre, about the disappearance of St. Lucians Ricky Joseph and Nafi Williams, stating that evidence points toward their deaths being caused by a U.S. boat strike on February 13, 2026.

CARICOM leaders pressed on U.S. deadly strikes in Caribbean

CARICOM leaders at the Closing Media Conference of the 51st Regular Meeting of CARICOM Heads of Government in Saint Lucia on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Pierre responded, “We are very concerned about the loss of life for anybody, particularly these people lost their lives at sea.” He further disclosed that St Lucian authorities have requested information from the U.S Government but to date have not received any.

“We have not got any information as to what happened, as I speak, we still consider it a missing persons’ case, and our own law enforcement is trying their best to see if they can decide what happened, but as far as we are concerned, the United States has (not) given us no information on that issue,” he continued.

For her part, Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said that investigations in her country found no evidence that the individuals involved were T&T nationals. “Nothing has given us any evidence of the alleged murders, as you’re calling them,” she said.

The PM stressed that any loss of life is one too many, but rejected characterising the incident as murder. Persad-Bissessar further pointed to legal advice received by her government, saying that it did not support such conclusion. She added, “Now we were very careful, we got legal advice, and we are not leaving them, whether it’s at St Lucians, whether it’s T&T, whoever it is in these boats…our legal advice has not been that they are murders, and I can only act within the rule of law based on the legal advice that we have received.”

Moreover, outgoing CARICOM Chairman and Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr. Terrance Drew, said his country’s position is guided by the rule of law. “We believe, like our colleagues in the rule of law. We believe everybody is innocent until proven guilty, those are the principles on which our justice system will consider them to be fundamental rights of our people. So, in a broad sense, that is where we stand as a country,” he said.

Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley further stated that her country’s position is that there are always better ways to deal with such situations to not result in loss of life.

She said, “let us also be clear that this is going to be a very acrimonious legal and geopolitical issue. There will be disputes as to whether this is an act of war or this is within the normal confines of criminal law, and I’ve heard both sides of the story.”

Mottley added, “War, as we understand it, is in a traditional conflict, theater of conflict. By the same token, jurisprudence has evolved, and that is part and parcel of what makes this issue so complex…Morally, I would prefer not to see it. If there is engagement between the parties militarily, they’re allowed to be able to take proportionate action. So, let us be very clear.”

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Caribbean Sea, CARICOM, United States military

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