According to reports, the U.S. military has carried out at least 13 lethal strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking since early September, killing at least 57 people and leaving 3 survivors.
According to reports, the U.S. military has carried out at least 13 lethal strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking since early September, killing at least 57 people and leaving 3 survivors.
Four suspected drug-trafficking boats
The US military, under the command of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, launched coordinated strikes against four suspected drug-trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Monday, killing 14 people and leaving one survivor, according to CNN.
The deadliest single-day actions
The operation marked one of the deadliest single-day actions in the Trump administration’s intensified campaign against maritime narcotics routes.
In the Eastern Pacific
On X, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the operation, writing: «Yesterday, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out three lethal kinetic strikes on four vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations (DTO) trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific.»
The four vessels
Hegseth explained that US intelligence had been tracking the four vessels as they moved along established narco-trafficking routes in the region: «The four vessels were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics.»
One survivor
He went on to describe the details of the strikes, noting that they were conducted in three separate attacks targeting four boats: «Eight male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessels during the first strike. Four male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel during the second strike. Three male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel during the third strike. A total of 14 narco-terrorists were killed during the three strikes, with one survivor. All strikes were in international waters with no U.S. forces harmed.»
International rescue
According to Hegseth, the lone survivor was later subject to international rescue coordination efforts: «Regarding the survivor, USSOUTHCOM immediately initiated Search and Rescue (SAR) standard protocols; Mexican SAR authorities accepted the case and assumed responsibility for coordinating the rescue.»
The search and rescue operation
According to Reuters, Mexican naval authorities confirmed they had taken charge of coordinating the search and rescue operation following a request from U.S. forces, though it remained unclear whether the survivor had been successfully recovered.
A broader shift
Hegseth concluded his statement on X with a forceful declaration framing the strikes as part of a broader shift in US military focus: «The Department has spent over TWO DECADES defending other homelands. Now, we’re defending our own. These narco-terrorists have killed more Americans than Al-Qaeda, and they will be treated the same. We will track them, we will network them, and then, we will hunt and kill them.»
13 lethal strike
According to reports, the U.S. military has carried out at least 13 lethal strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking since early September, killing at least 57 people and leaving 3 survivors. Human rights groups and legal experts have accused the Trump administration of potential war crimes and extrajudicial killings, citing the absence of congressional authorization, lack of transparency, and the targeting of civilians outside a recognized armed conflict