The U.S. military launched two strikes targeting two boats allegedly transporting narcotics in international waters in the eastern Pacific on Sunday, killing all six aboard, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Monday.
“Yesterday, at the direction of President Trump, two lethal kinetic strikes were conducted on two vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations,” Hegseth said in a post on social media.
“Both strikes were conducted in international waters and 3 male narco-terrorists were aboard each vessel.
All 6 were killed. No U.S. forces were harmed,” he said.
The Pentagon’s latest boat strikes have so far claimed at least 75 lives in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since Sept. 2.
The Trump administration has expanded its military presence across the Caribbean since August.
Currently, the U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean is the largest in the region in more than three decades, and the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford is expected to arrive in the Caribbean in mid-November.
The continuous strikes and military buildup have raised widespread speculation about the White House’s motive.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly condemned Washington’s actions as attempts to overthrow his government and expand U.S. military influence in Latin America. Colombian President Gustavo Petro accused the U.S. government of “murder” for the killings at sea.
Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump said he has not yet decided whether the United States will launch ground strikes inside Venezuela, contradicting media reports that his administration will attack Venezuelan military facilities.
