Latin America Defense Monitor — November 8–14, 2026
Weekly Edition · Saturday, 14 November 2026 · Issue #30
Executive Summary
The Big Picture: Venezuela announced a military operation on its border with Colombia, a drone attack killed at least four Colombian soldiers, and Haitian police backed by Salvadoran troops hit a gang leader’s house, all in one week. For US readers, the week shows that Washington’s own words about force, from President Donald Trump’s remarks on Cuba to Mexico’s rejection of the word terrorism for cartels, now frame much of the region’s security debate.
On Thursday, 12 November, Venezuela’s armed forces announced a military operation in Apure state, on the Colombian border. The announcement said units would search river and forest areas to find and dismantle armed-group camps and clandestine airstrips.
In Colombia, President Abelardo de la Espriella said on Thursday, 12 November, that a drone attack in Tibú killed at least four soldiers, and military sources point to the ELN, the National Liberation Army guerrilla group. A day earlier, on Wednesday, 11 November, armed men kidnapped Nancy Gómez, the wife of the mayor of Uribia, and the authorities’ preliminary information points to the same group.
Bottom Line Up Front: The week’s biggest open question is whether the Apure operation is connected to the Colombian attacks and kidnappings, because the Venezuelan announcement did not say so. We found no new US boat strike and no court ruling on the strikes for 8–14 November, and no verified defence decision for Brazil or Argentina.
Latin America Defense Monitor: Where Things Stand
The Week’s Key Stories
8–14 November 2026
Venezuela Announces an Operation in Apure, on the Colombian Border
On Thursday, 12 November, Venezuela’s armed forces announced, through their Strategic Operational Command, the joint command that directs operations, a military operation in Apure state, which borders Colombia. The announcement said units would search river and forest areas to find and dismantle armed-group camps and clandestine airstrips, and named extortion, drug trafficking and smuggling as targets.
As reported, the statement did not name the ELN or the kidnappings, and Venezuela’s foreign ministry said separately that it remains committed to border security cooperation. The announcement followed the reported strike on an ELN camp in Apure around 30 October that we covered in last week’s edition, and we found no official confirmation of who carried that strike out.
Four Soldiers Killed in Tibú; Two Kidnappings Test the Army
President Abelardo de la Espriella said on Thursday, 12 November, that a drone attack in Tibú, in Norte de Santander department, had killed at least four soldiers. He called the dead heroes, called those responsible “narco-terrorists” and ordered the security forces to pursue them.
Military sources attribute the attack to the ELN, and early reports differ on how many soldiers were wounded, two or five. Colombia’s Ombudsman’s Office, the state human-rights body, reported in August that drone attacks by armed groups rose 146% in the first five months of 2026 compared with the same months of 2025.
On Wednesday, 11 November, at about 6:10 a.m., armed men kidnapped Nancy Gómez, wife of Uribia Mayor Jaime Luis Buitrago, as she left a gym in La Guajira department. De la Espriella said he ordered a full deployment of the security forces, and the authorities’ preliminary information points to the ELN.
The ELN’s Eastern War Front confirmed on 5 November that it holds Army Sub-Lieutenant María Camila Pantoja Hernández, kidnapped in Saravena, Arauca department, on 4 November. We found no report of her release.
No New Boat Strike Found; the Court Challenge Is Still Open
We found no boat-strike announcement from US Southern Command for 8–14 November. The last one we have confirmed was announced on 27 October, in the Eastern Pacific, and killed five people.
The first federal lawsuit over the strikes is a wrongful-death suit filed in Boston on 27 January 2026 by families of two Trinidadian men killed in an October 2025 strike, according to the complaint as reported. It seeks damages, the government has asked the court to dismiss it for lack of jurisdiction, and we found no ruling this week.
Trump Says He Would “Certainly Consider” Military Action Against Cuba
In a radio interview on Thursday, 12 November, President Donald Trump said he wants to “get Cuba done” before he leaves office, and, asked by the host about a short campaign of military force, that he would “certainly consider” it. He added that Secretary of State Marco Rubio “would love to do that.”
No operation has been announced, and we found no Pentagon order or statement on Cuba this week. The remarks came a week after the US Treasury, the US finance ministry, announced new Cuba-related sanctions on 5 November.
Polymarket, a prediction market where traders bet real money, priced “US military action against Cuba by December 31” at 8.5% as of 10:11 ET (15:11 UTC) on Saturday, 14 November, with about US$7.7 million traded across all dates of that market. The price is a bet, not a poll or an official forecast, and we show it next to the reporting, never instead of it.
Why we show this: prediction markets turn real-money bets into a live probability that moves within minutes of the news, which is why investors, campaigns and newsrooms in the United States now follow them closely. We show them next to polls and official results, never instead of them.
Sheinbaum Rejects the “Terrorist” Label for Cartels
At her morning press conference on Tuesday, 10 November, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexico does not share the use of the word terrorism for criminal groups. She said Mexican law defines terrorism differently, that Mexico keeps the term organised crime, and that its position would not change.
She also said nothing had signalled a shift in relations with Washington, and she described the cooperation model as “coordination without subordination.” Washington holds the opposite view on the label: the US State Department, the US foreign ministry, designated several Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organisations on 20 February 2025.
Ecuador Delivers 5,570 Rifles to Its Armed Forces
On Tuesday, 10 November, President Daniel Noboa led a ceremony at the Simón Bolívar Air Base in Guayaquil at which the armed forces received 5,570 automatic rifles, 20 light machine guns and 24,253 items of tactical equipment, an investment of US$24.5 million, according to the Defence Ministry’s account as reported. Defence Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo said the new equipment lets the forces better face what he called the enemy in this war.
Loffredo named terrorists and organised criminal groups as the target of the better equipment. Reports differ on how the rifles are split between the services, so we give totals only.
Salvadoran Troops Back a Raid on a Gang Leader’s House
On Sunday, 8 November, Haitian National Police drone teams, with Salvadoran soldiers in support, destroyed a house near Port-au-Prince used by Wilson Joseph, leader of the 400 Mawozo gang, a Haitian armed group, according to reports citing unnamed sources. Joseph was not killed, and Damian Merlo, a lobbyist for El Salvador’s government, confirmed the operation.
The same sources put the number of armed men killed at several, possibly as many as 20, and that figure is unconfirmed. Reports of 9 and 10 November put the Salvadoran force at no fewer than 2,500 troops, sent after four Salvadoran aviation technicians went missing in a gang ambush on 18 October.
A Salvadoran official said Haiti’s prime minister, Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, will visit El Salvador next week to discuss the troops’ future. We found no announcement from the Gang Suppression Force, the UN-authorised multinational mission, dated 8–14 November.
What to Watch Next
Next 7–30 days
What Is Not Known
as of 14 November
Whether the Venezuelan operation in Apure is connected to the Colombian attacks and kidnappings is not established, and the Venezuelan statement did not name the ELN. The toll and the unit hit in Tibú come from the president’s post and military sources, and the number of wounded differs between reports.
The number of gunmen killed in the 8 November Haiti raid is unconfirmed, and Salvadoran officials have not published the troop total or the legal basis. Trump’s Cuba remarks are an interview statement, and we have no official US document describing a plan.
We found no verified defence news for Brazil or Argentina dated 8–14 November, and nothing verified on Paraguay’s security situation this week, so this edition leaves them out. Several official sites were not reachable from our servers, so some statements are given as quoted in reports and marked as such.
Background: What Is Happening in Haiti?.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Venezuela announce on 12 November?
Venezuela’s armed forces announced on 12 November a military operation in Apure state, on the Colombian border. The statement said units would dismantle armed-group camps and clandestine airstrips, and it did not name the ELN, a Colombian guerrilla group.
What happened in Tibú, Colombia?
President Abelardo de la Espriella said on 12 November that a drone attack in Tibú killed at least four soldiers. Military sources attribute it to the ELN, a Colombian guerrilla group; reports differ on the number of wounded.
Was there a new US boat strike this week?
We found no new announcement from US Southern Command for 8–14 November. The last strike we have confirmed was announced on 27 October in the Eastern Pacific and killed five people.
What did Trump say about Cuba?
In a radio interview on 12 November, Trump said he wants to “get Cuba done” before leaving office and would “certainly consider” a short campaign of military force, as the host put it. No operation has been announced.
Sources: Venezuela’s armed forces, Strategic Operational Command (announcement of the Apure operation, 12 November, as reported); Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella (statements on the Tibú attack, 12 November, and on the Uribia kidnapping, 11 November, as reported); Colombia’s Army (Pantoja kidnapping, 4–5 November, as reported); Colombia’s Ombudsman’s Office (human-rights report, presented August 2026, as reported); President Donald Trump (radio interview, 12 November; interviewer’s programme page); Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum (morning press conference, 10 November); US State Department (foreign terrorist organisation designations, 20 February 2025); US Southern Command (27 October strike announcement); US federal court in Boston (complaint of 27 January 2026, as reported); Haiti raid of 8 November and Salvadoran troop figures (as reported on 9–10 November, citing a lobbyist for El Salvador’s government and a Salvadoran official); US Army (photo of 7 November, DVIDS image 10079354, the US Defense Department’s image archive); Polymarket (market “US military action against Cuba by…?”, read 14 November, 10:11 ET). Statements were read as quoted in national and wire reports on 14 November where official sites were unreachable.
Previous edition: November 1–7, 2026. All editions: Defense Monitor.
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