U.S. Launches New Strike on a Vessel in the Caribbean

The U.S. military has carried out another strike on a vessel it claims was smuggling narcotics in the Caribbean Sea. According to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, three people were killed, bringing the total number of deaths from this controversial campaign by Donald Trump’s administration to at least 70.

The series of operations began in early September. U.S. forces have been targeting boats across the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. Some experts describe these actions as extrajudicial killings, even when the targets are known drug traffickers.

According to the Pentagon, at least 18 vessels—17 speedboats and one semi-submersible—have been destroyed since the start of the campaign. However, Washington has yet to provide convincing evidence that the targets were indeed carrying narcotics or posed any threat to the United States.

Hegseth posted a video of the latest strike on X, saying that, as with previous operations, it was conducted in international waters and struck "a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization". He noted that U.S. service members were not harmed.

"To all narcoterrorists threatening our country: if you want to survive—stop trafficking drugs. If you continue—we will kill you," the minister wrote.

As in other videos released by the U.S. government, portions of the vessel’s image were obscured for unspecified reasons.

The Trump administration has expanded the U.S. military presence in Latin America, citing the goal of ending drug trafficking. Six Navy ships have been deployed to the region, F-35 fighter jets relocated to Puerto Rico, and the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier group placed on alert.

This week, the U.S. Senate blocked a Democrat-sponsored war powers resolution that would have required Trump to seek congressional approval for strikes on Venezuela. The decision allowed the president to retain full authority to broaden the campaign against the country.

According to sources familiar with the discussions, the administration has developed several potential military scenarios against Venezuela, and presidential advisers have asked the Justice Department to provide legal justification for strikes on targets not directly linked to maritime vessels.

Governments and families of the victims claim that many of those killed in U.S. attacks on so-called “narco-boats” were civilians—mostly fishermen.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has repeatedly accused Trump of trying to oust him. U.S. bombers have conducted several demonstrative flights near Venezuela’s coast—at least four times since mid-October.

Maduro, accused by the United States of involvement in drug trafficking, insists that his country has neither drug crops nor production facilities and that Venezuela’s territory is used as a transit route for Colombian cocaine without its consent.

The Trump administration has informed Congress that the United States is in a state of “armed conflict” with Latin American drug cartels, classifying them as terrorist organizations to provide legal justification for the strikes.