Tonight, tensions are as high as they have ever been on the Sarstoon - as the Guatemalan Navy is imposing, by force, a claim to ownership of the Sarstoon - as being part of their territory - which it is not.
Last night we showed you how they planted a flag on Sarstoon island on the tenth September. Well, tonight there's more evidence of aggression. Videos obtained an hour ago by 7News of a confrontation which reportedly happened today show a BDF vessel outnumbered and outflanked by the Guatemalan navy.
They deployed aggressive water maneuvers and in commanding tones told the BDF patrol that the waters of the Sarstoon River are not in dispute. When the BDF continued along the river, the Guatemalan military cut them off causing the Belize vessel to rear end the GAF navy vessel.
We present the video without captions - due to time constraints - but viewing them, you can certainly get a sense of the danger:
As you can see there, Initially, the BDF commanding officer was reading a statement in Spanish to the GAF asking respectfully that steps be taken to ensure a peaceful encounter. He asked that the Guatemalans respect Belize's sovereignty and maintain a safe distance to avoid any provocative action that could intensify tension. Additionally, he asked that the GAF conduct its routine patrols within the confines of international law and respecting Belize's territorial integrity. He notified them that they are violating the 1859 treaty. However, the GAF captain stood firm and actually spoke over the Belizean soldier as he was reading his statement. Again, here is that untranslated version.
