The U.S. military launched a strike Tuesday on a vessel suspected of transporting drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one man and leaving two survivors. Video posted on social media by U.S. Southern Command shows a boat speeding through water before exploding into flames. Southern Command stated that the U.S. Coast Guard was immediately notified to activate the Search and Rescue system for the survivors.
This operation is part of a campaign dubbed Southern Spear, in which the Trump administration has targeted alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters, including the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific, since early September. These strikes have killed at least 194 people in total. The administration maintains that the U.S. is at war against Latin American drug cartels, which it says are responsible for fatal drug overdoses plaguing many American communities.
The campaign has drawn intense scrutiny from military legal scholars and some Democratic lawmakers, as the military has not provided evidence that any of the vessels were carrying drugs. Consequently, the Pentagon inspector general’s office has self-initiated a review to evaluate whether the military followed the established six-phase Joint Targeting Cycle, which includes commander’s intent, target development, analysis, decision, execution, and assessment. The office noted that the review will not probe the legality of the strikes.