The American military carried out an air strike Wednesday on a drug boat in the Pacific. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced the results of the attack on social media, adding that the strike killed four men and destroyed the vessel.
“The Western Hemisphere is no longer a safe haven for narco-terrorists bringing drugs to our shores to poison Americans. The Department of War will continue to hunt them down and eliminate them wherever they operate,” Hegseth wrote. A video of the strike accompanied the post.
The Trump administration has made destroying drug transportation networks in the western hemisphere a priority, including by destroying boats that U.S. intelligence has determined are involved in narcotrafficking. This is the 14th known boat to be destroyed as part of American counternarcotics operations in the region, which have been principally focused around Venezuelan territorial waters.
The administration’s choice to counter drug boats with lethal force is a deviation from normal U.S. anti-narcotics operations. The buildup of American military assets in the Caribbean, including a carrier group, has been denounced by the Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro as preparation for an American military intervention in the country.
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