The US Southern Command has confirmed a series of maritime counter-narcotics operations resulting in multiple fatalities across strategic trafficking routes. In coordinated strikes targeting three vessels allegedly involved in drug trafficking, eleven individuals described by officials as ‘male narco-terrorists’ were killed. The operations occurred in both the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean waters, with four fatalities on each of two Pacific vessels and three additional deaths on a Caribbean vessel.
This latest action extends the Trump administration’s aggressive campaign against suspected narcotics transporters, which has now exceeded 40 lethal engagements since September. Military authorities asserted that intelligence indicated the targeted vessels were actively transiting established drug trafficking corridors and participating in narcotics operations.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth characterized the overall mission as essential to removing ‘narco-terrorists from our hemisphere’ and protecting American citizens from dangerous substances. The operations have proceeded without injury to US military personnel, though the program recently recorded its first American casualty when a Marine fell overboard from an attack ship in the Caribbean.
The frequency of strikes has diminished following the January capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whom the administration accuses of collaborating with trafficking organizations. Meanwhile, legal challenges are mounting as families of deceased Trinidadian men filed a lawsuit alleging the October 14 strike constituted ‘lawless killings in cold blood’ without due process.
International law experts have raised concerns about the legality of targeting civilians without judicial process, while the administration maintains these actions occur within a formal armed conflict against drug cartels, designating crew members as combatants. The US government has not publicly presented evidence substantiating drug shipments on the vessels struck.