Eric SchmittLuis Ferré-Sadurní
By Eric Schmitt and Luis Ferré-Sadurní
Eric Schmitt reported from Washington, and Luis Ferré-Sadurní from Bogotá, Colombia.
Published March 3, 2026
Updated March 4, 2026, 9:28 a.m. ET
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The United States and Ecuador have launched joint military operations against “designated terrorist organizations” in the South American country, the Pentagon said on Tuesday night, in what appeared to be a major expansion of the U.S. military’s unilateral strikes against boats in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific that the Trump administration has accused of carrying drugs.
U.S. Special Forces soldiers are advising and supporting Ecuadorean commandos on raids across the country against suspected drug shipment facilities and other drug-related sites, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters.
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