The U.S. military killed three people Sunday in a strike on a boat accused of ferrying drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean. U.S. Southern Command released a video showing the vessel moving swiftly through the water before an explosion left it in flames. The military stated the boat was engaged in narco-trafficking operations along known smuggling routes.
This attack is part of a broader campaign by the Trump administration that began in early September, involving dozens of strikes on alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters and the Caribbean Sea. The total death toll from these operations has reached at least 186 people. Despite the attacks, the military has not provided evidence that any of the vessels were carrying drugs.
These strikes occurred as the U.S. established its largest military presence in the region in generations, months before a January raid captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Maduro was brought to New York to face drug trafficking charges and has pleaded not guilty.
President Donald Trump has justified the escalation as necessary to stem the flow of drugs into the United States, asserting that the U.S. is in an armed conflict with cartels in Latin America. Meanwhile, critics have questioned the overall legality of the boat strikes.