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By Simon Crerar and Gabe Whisnant
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The U.S. military carried out its 22nd strike on a suspected drug-running vessel Thursday, targeting a small boat in the eastern Pacific after nearly a three-week pause, U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said.
The operation is the latest in a campaign of strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific that the Trump administration says are aimed at narcotics traffickers.
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Southern Command said four people were killed in the latest strike, bringing the death toll from the series of operations to at least 87 since they began in September. The announcement comes as the administration faces growing scrutiny over a second strike on September 2, amid allegations that U.S. forces killed two survivors who were left floating in the water after the initial explosion.
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Why It Matters
SOUTHCOM’s confirmation marks the resumption of a lethal maritime campaign that President Donald Trump has repeatedly framed as a cornerstone of his administration’s drug-interdiction policy.
Thursday’s operation extends a lethal maritime campaign that has already sparked bipartisan investigations on Capitol Hill and fears among legal experts that U.S. forces could be exposed to future prosecution.
The renewed action unfolds under a cloud: the allegation that U.S. forces shot and killed post-explosion survivors in the water during the September 2 strike. That incident has raised questions about rules of engagement, operational oversight and potential violations of international law.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has insisted the operations are lawful and framed them as “lethal, kinetic strikes” intended to destroy “narco-boats” and kill “narco-terrorists,” while asserting that every trafficker killed is tied to a designated terrorist organization
The new strike suggests the administration is pressing ahead with the mission even as the controversy over the first operation continues to deepen.
What To Know
The administration has repeatedly described the targeted vessels as drug-trafficking boats, but has provided limited detail about the intelligence behind each strike or the recovery of narcotics or weapons afterward.
The first strike on September 2 has become the focal point of public scrutiny after allegations emerged that two survivors of the initial explosion were later killed by U.S. forces while still in the water. Those claims have prompted demands for transparency and internal reviews.
Lawmakers and former military lawyers have warned the operations could breach peacetime limits on the use of force and the laws of armed conflict, particularly if survivors of an initial strike were deliberately targeted while shipwrecked, who are given specific legal protections.
Hegseth’s role in the campaign has been under growing scrutiny. The Defense Secretary told Fox News he “watched [the first strike] live”, comments that have raised questions among lawmakers about how directly involved he was in the mission that set off months of controversial operations.
What People Are Saying
Hegseth to reporters in the White House during a cabinet meeting Tuesday: "I did not personally see survivors. That thing was on fire and it exploded... you can't see anything. This is called the fog of war."
Senator Adam Schiff of California, a Democrat, wrote on X: "The time to stop the Trump administration from dragging us into war with Venezuela is not after the bombs start falling. It’s right now. If Congress doesn't do its job, we accept the role Trump is relegating us to: Constitutional afterthought."
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.
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