US military strikes suspected drug vessel in Pacific Ocean, killing two ‘narco-terrorists’
The US military has expanded its counter-drug campaign and carried out a strike against a suspected drug vessel in Pacific Ocean waters off South America, a US official says.
The strike is the first known US military operation in the Pacific since US President Donald Trump’s administration started a new offensive against the drug trade that has led to at least seven strikes in the Caribbean and dramatically raised US tensions with Venezuela and Colombia.
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth posted a video of the strike.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“Yesterday, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel being operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization and conducting narco-trafficking in the Eastern Pacific,” he wrote on X.
“The vessel was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking transit route, and carrying narcotics.
“There were two narco-terrorists aboard the vessel during the strike, which was conducted in international waters.
“Both terrorists were killed and no U.S. forces were harmed in this strike. Narco-terrorists intending to bring poison to our shores, will find no safe harbor anywhere in our hemisphere.
“Just as Al Qaeda waged war on our homeland, these cartels are waging war on our border and our people. There will be no refuge or forgiveness—only justice.”
The latest strike, which was first reported by CBS News, comes against the backdrop of a US military build-up in the Caribbean that includes guided missile destroyers, F-35 fighter jets, a nuclear submarine and about 6500 troops.
Legal experts have questioned why the US military is carrying out the strikes, instead of the Coast Guard, which is the main US maritime law enforcement agency, and why other efforts to halt the shipments are not made before resorting to deadly strikes.
In August, the Coast Guard launched an operation known as Operation Viper to interdict drugs in the Pacific Ocean.
As of October 15, the Coast Guard said it had seized more than 100,000 pounds of cocaine.
It was unclear why the administration carried out a strike in this instance instead of interdicting the vessel.
The strikes in the Caribbean have killed at least 32 people but the US administration has provided few details, such as how many alleged drugs the vessels were carrying or what specific evidence it had to suggest they were carrying drugs.
