Four people were killed Wednesday after a U.S. military strike targeted an alleged drug-running vessel in the Eastern Pacific, according to the Pentagon. The strike is the latest in a campaign that began in early September against boats the U.S. says are involved in narcotics trafficking.
U.S. Southern Command said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized a “lethal kinetic strike” on a vessel operated by a designated terrorist organization in international waters. Officials claimed intelligence showed the boat was traveling along a known narco-trafficking route, though no public evidence of drugs was released. The victims were described as four male “narco-terrorists.”
Since Sept. 2, the U.S. military has carried out 26 similar strikes in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean, killing at least 99 people. The campaign has drawn increasing scrutiny following reports that a Sept. 2 attack involved a follow-on “double tap” strike that killed survivors of an initial hit. Some lawmakers and legal experts argue such actions could violate international law.
The strikes are part of broader pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whom Washington accuses of links to drug trafficking. Venezuela denies the claims, while U.S. lawmakers remain divided over the expanding military operations.
