Washington (TDI): The United States carried out a strike on a vessel off Venezuela’s coast that officials claim was transporting narcotics, killing four men on board, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed Friday. It marks at least the fourth such attack in recent weeks.
The operation highlights President Donald Trump’s increasingly aggressive use of military force in areas that critics argue push the boundaries of US law. Recent actions have ranged from deploying active-duty soldiers in Los Angeles to targeting alleged drug traffickers at sea.
According to Hegseth, the strike took place in international waters. He said the boat was carrying “substantial amounts of narcotics headed to America to poison our people.” In a post on X, he vowed the campaign would continue: “These strikes will continue until the attacks on the American people are over!!!!”
The Pentagon chief also released a 40-second video showing projectiles raining down on the vessel before it erupted in flames. He offered no details on the quantity or type of drugs supposedly onboard, but insisted intelligence “without a doubt” confirmed the men were “narco-terrorists.”
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Trump, also without presenting evidence, claimed the shipment contained enough drugs to kill between 25,000 and 50,000 people.
The Venezuelan government has not yet commented.
Traditionally, drug interdiction at sea has been the responsibility of the US Coast Guard, not the military. But earlier this week, the Pentagon told Congress that Trump has formally deemed the US to be in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels, a legal justification for using military force in the Caribbean, according to Reuters.
That rationale has alarmed some former military lawyers, who argue that killing suspected traffickers at sea instead of apprehending them raises serious concerns under international law.
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Meanwhile, a significant US military buildup is under way in the region. Eight American warships, thousands of sailors and marines, F-35 fighter jets in Puerto Rico, and even a nuclear-powered submarine have been deployed to the southern Caribbean.
Washington has released little information about previous strikes, including who was killed or what was seized.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who is wanted in the US on drug charges he denies, has long accused Washington of using narcotics allegations as cover to topple him. In August, the US doubled its reward for information leading to his arrest to $50 million.
