The United States on Friday carried out another “lethal kinetic strike” on a drug trafficking vessel in the Caribbean, killing three individuals described by Washington as “narco-terrorists.”US war secretary Pete Hegseth shared a video of the strike on X and said, “As we’ve said before, vessel strikes on narco-terrorists will continue until their poisoning of the American people stops. Today, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization.””The vessel was trafficking narcotics in the Caribbean and was struck in international waters. No US forces were harmed in the strike, and three male narco-terrorists — who were aboard the vessel — were killed,” Hegseth said. He added a warning: “To all narco-terrorists who threaten our homeland: if you want to stay alive, stop trafficking drugs. If you keep trafficking deadly drugs — we will kill you.”The latest operation marks the continuation of an intensified maritime campaign launched by the US in early September, targeting what it calls “narco-terrorist” vessels across international waters.Two days earlier: Another strike in the Pacific
Two days prior, the US carried out a similar strike in the eastern Pacific, killing two people aboard another alleged drug vessel. That operation was part of a campaign that, according to official statements, has now destroyed 17 vessels — including a semi-submersible — and resulted in at least 66 deaths.”Today, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO),” Hegseth wrote in a post on X, confirming that “intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics.”The strikes have been conducted primarily in international waters across the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Washington has not yet publicly provided evidence that the targeted boats posed an imminent threat to the United States.Expanding military presence and legal debate
The operations come amid the deployment of an American aircraft carrier to the region, a move analysts view as an expansion of US military presence across Caribbean waters. President Donald Trump has described the strikes as actions within an “armed conflict” against drug cartels, arguing that these groups are “foreign terrorist organisations.””We will find and terminate EVERY vessel with the intention of trafficking drugs to America to poison our citizens,” Hegseth wrote in another post. “Protecting the homeland is our TOP priority. NO cartel terrorist stands a chance against the American military.”However, legal and human rights experts have criticised the operations as extrajudicial killings, pointing out that the US has not provided a clear legal framework or justification for the strikes, even when the targets are identified drug traffickers. Lawmakers from both parties have demanded greater transparency and a formal explanation for the campaign’s scope and legality.Political reaction and regional tensions
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who remains under US indictment on narcoterrorism charges, accused Washington of “fabricating a war” against him as American strikes move closer to his country’s maritime borders.When asked on CBS’s “60 Minutes” whether the US was heading toward war with Venezuela, Trump said, “I doubt it. I don’t think so.” He also agreed that Maduro’s “days are numbered” but declined to say whether he would authorise land strikes.The series of strikes underscores Washington’s renewed militarised approach to narcotics interdiction, marking a sharp escalation in US counter-narcotics operations across international waters — and raising questions about the boundaries of its campaign under international law.
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