What Happened When the US Struck Ecuadorian Fishing Boats?

A US patrol vessel intercepted and destroyed an Ecuadorian fishing boat in international waters on September 8, one day before Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Quito, according to The Guardian. Ten crew members from the vessel were left adrift at sea and were not rescued for two more days.

What happened to the fishing boat Don Rufo?

The Don Rufo was stopped by a US patrol vessel in international waters near Ecuador on September 8, the Guardian reported. The boat's captain, Mero Calderón, 50, said armed personnel boarded despite his attempt to show them the crew's catch.

"The gringos were all armed as if they were going to war," Calderón said. "They brought two huge bombs aboard, took us to their ship, handcuffed and blindfolded us, and blew our boat to pieces," he added, according to the Guardian.

Calderón and five other crew members were handed over to Ecuadorian authorities. US Southern Command later posted a 14-second edited video of the operation, the Guardian reported.

A separate vessel, the Manta, was intercepted by US forces on September 5 and also destroyed, according to a photo caption published by the Guardian.

Why was Rubio in Ecuador when the strike happened?

Rubio traveled to Quito on September 9, the day after the Don Rufo was destroyed. Ecuador's president, Daniel Noboa, presented Rubio with the country's highest honor, the National Order of Merit Grand Cross, at Carondelet palace. Noboa credited Rubio with "helping to promote peace in the region," the Guardian reported.

The ceremony took place while 10 fishers from the Don Rufo remained missing at sea.

What happened to the fishers left adrift?

Ten crew members had been fishing farther offshore in a smaller boat not equipped for a return trip to shore, according to the Guardian. The Ecuadorian navy located and rescued them on September 10. By then, Rubio had left Ecuador for Peru, en route back to the United States.

A photo published by the Guardian shows the rescued crew aboard the Ecuadorian navy vessel BAE Atahualpa after what the navy described as an air-maritime search and reconnaissance operation.

What does the Trump administration say about the strikes?

Rubio has said the United States remains willing to "blow up ships if need be," according to the Guardian's reporting. The administration has not signaled a change in approach following the September operations near Ecuador.

Noboa's decision to honor Rubio days after the Don Rufo strike suggests continued cooperation between Quito and Washington on maritime security, even as the human cost of individual operations draws scrutiny.

What are critics saying?

An attorney representing affected fishers said crews are "losing their livelihoods" as a result of the strikes, according to the Guardian's reporting. The report does not name the attorney or specify what legal action, if any, is planned.

The Guardian's account does not include a public response from Ecuadorian officials disputing the fishers' description of events, nor does it include additional comment from the US State Department beyond Rubio's quoted remarks.

What to watch

• Whether Ecuadorian authorities release further details on the fate of the Don Rufo crew members handed over to local custody.
• Whether attorneys representing fishers file claims or lawsuits over lost boats and equipment.
• Whether US Southern Command discloses additional vessel strikes in the eastern Pacific beyond the Don Rufo and Manta incidents.
• Whether Rubio or the State Department issue further public comment on the criteria used to authorize strikes on fishing vessels.

The strikes occur amid broader US engagement with governments across Latin America on security and economic matters; HTT News has separately reported on friction over Venezuelan gold imports and US refiners.

The Guardian's report is based on interviews with the Don Rufo's captain and documentation from US Southern Command and the Ecuadorian navy. No US government transcript of the interception has been made public.

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