Sanctions are portrayed as diplomatic tools but in reality function as economic warfare that punishes ordinary civilians in the Caribbean and Latin America. U.S. measures against Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Haiti have tightened since the 1960s, curbing trade, freezing assets and cutting off finance. The result has been chronic shortages of food and medicine, rising poverty and stunted growth. In January 2026 the U.S.‑backed campaign culminated in the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, turning sanctions into extraterritorial violence. Protesters in Manhattan held signs demanding an end to U.S. bombing and sanctions, calling them “blood for oil” and “US out.” The article argues that sanctions are not a humane alternative to bombs; they are a quiet war that leaves civilians as collateral damage.

Original article can be found here.