Former US President Donald Trump has reportedly pledged to deploy “assassination squads” of US special forces into Mexico if re-elected, with the aim of eliminating the heads of drug cartels, according to a report.
Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, conveyed his intentions to three allies, citing the need for a robust response to Mexico’s drug cartels amid the escalating fentanyl crisis in the US, as detailed in a report by Rolling Stone.
Drawing parallels to the US military’s successful elimination of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019, Trump proposed deploying special operation units to conduct targeted assassinations within Mexico’s notorious drug cartels, regardless of the Mexican government’s consent.
Furthermore, Trump advocated for the establishment of a “kill list of drug lords,” which US special forces would utilize to identify targets for capture or elimination.
The former president argued that such actions would instill fear among cartel leaders and disrupt their illicit operations, though he questioned why similar measures had not been undertaken previously by the US government.
While Trump has publicly vowed to employ “Special Forces, cyber warfare, and other overt and covert actions” to combat cartel activities if he returns to the White House, specific details of his proposed plans remain undisclosed, including the scale of deployment and level of cooperation with the Mexican government.
Trump’s proposal for “kill squads” has garnered support from Republican lawmakers and think tanks, with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis pledging similar action if elected president.
However, the proposal has been met with strong opposition from Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who denounced it as “an offence to the people of Mexico” and asserted his government’s sovereignty over its territory, rejecting any foreign intervention, especially by armed forces.
The issue underscores the contentious nature of US-Mexico relations, particularly regarding security and law enforcement cooperation.
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