The US military says it struck three more suspected drug-carrying vessels in the eastern Pacific on Monday, the latest in a campaign of shipping strikes ordered by the Trump administration that has killed at least 95 people on 25 boats.
Monday's strikes killed eight people on three boats, US Southern Command said. said in the post on X. It alleged that the passengers were “male narco-terrorists” and that the boats were “transiting known drug trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and engaged in drug trafficking. The strike was authorized by Defense Minister Pete Hegseth, Southern Command said.
Southern Command also released a 47-second video showing three separate airstrikes on shipping.
In early September, the military began striking shipping in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean as part of a move by the Trump administration. described as a “non-international armed conflict” against drug cartels, which he called terrorist groups.
However, this campaign is becoming increasingly controversial. Democratic lawmakers and several Republicans argue that the Trump administration lacks the legal authority to carry out strikes and has not provided sufficient evidence that the boats were actually carrying drugs.
Meanwhile, the September 2 strike, which began with the election campaign, attracted close attention after reports it turned out that there were two people in the ship survived the first strike, but were killed in the subsequent strike. Democrats who watched the video of the September 2 operation condemned this decisionand some critics warned that the killing of shipwreck survivors may constitute a war crime. Republicans have defended the subsequent strike, arguing that survivors may have still been involved in the fighting.
The boat strikes are part of a broader U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean and near Latin America, with several naval ships, including the USS Gerald R. Ford, and fighter jets deployed to the region in recent months.
The administration has strong pressure at the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, accusing it of collaborating with drug cartels and also claiming that Colombia has failed to combat drug trafficking. Both countries criticized the boat strikes, and the Venezuelan government accused the Trump administration of seeking regime change.
