The United States military killed three men in a strike on a suspected drug-trafficking vessel in international waters in the Caribbean, US War Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed on 7 November.
Hegseth stated in a post on social media platform X that the vessel was operated by a group designated as a “terrorist organisation” and that the operation had been carried out under the direction of President Donald Trump.
No US personnel were reported injured during the strike.
The strike was described by Hegseth as a “lethal kinetic strike” targeting a boat allegedly involved in trafficking narcotics. He also shared a 20-second video clip, marked unclassified, showing a small vessel being hit by a munition and exploding.
As we’ve said before, vessel strikes on narco-terrorists will continue until their the 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… pic.twitter.com/gQF9LpSjqD
In his statement, Hegseth reiterated that U.S. operations against what he called “narco-terrorists” would continue until drug trafficking into the United States stops.
He warned that anyone involved in the trade “risks being killed” if they continue to threaten American lives through narcotics smuggling.
Since September, US forces have conducted more than a dozen similar strikes near the Venezuelan coast and in the eastern Pacific Ocean, which have resulted in over 60 deaths.
While US authorities have linked the targeted vessels to terrorist or criminal organisations, no further evidence identifying the specific group involved in the latest strike has been provided.
