Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that the US military killed four men in a strike on an alleged drug vessel in the Eastern Pacific on Wednesday. The attack brought the total death toll to 61 people.
He said, “This vessel, like all the others, was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics.”
“Four male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel—and killed—during the strike, which was conducted in international waters. No U.S. forces were harmed in this strike. The Western Hemisphere is no longer a safe haven for narco-terrorists bringing drugs to our shores to poison Americans. The Department of War will continue to hunt them down and eliminate them wherever they operate,” Hegseth added.
A 22-second video clip posted by Hegseth shows boat in water getting struck and explodes.
The strikes are part of President Donald Trump’s escalated efforts to target suspected drug-smuggling networks operating in international waters.
14 killed in three strikes
Earlier on Tuesday, Hegseth stated that US forces killed 14 narco-terrorists during the three strikes, with one survivor.
“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 were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics,” he said.
“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,” he added.
According to Hegseth, Mexican authorities have assumed responsibility for the search and rescue operation for the lone survivor. CNN reported that, in total, 14 vessels were destroyed, with three survivors identified till yesterday.
Last week, the Trump administration expanded its campaign to the eastern Pacific, following earlier strikes against vessels in the Caribbean Sea. Earlier this month, the US Navy detained two survivors of a similar Caribbean strike before repatriating them to Ecuador and Colombia.
During her daily press briefing, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said her government had been informed of Monday’s operation and the possible survivor. “These events occurred in international waters,” she said, noting that she had directed Foreign Minister Juan Ramon de la Fuente to coordinate with US Ambassador Ron Johnson and Mexico’s Navy Secretariat for more details, as reported by CNN.
CNN’s report mentioned that the Trump administration had issued a classified legal opinion allowing the use of lethal force against drug traffickers by them as enemy combatants, enabling such strikes to occur without judicial oversight.
