US kills 11 in 3 strikes on alleged drug-running boats

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The U.S. military conducted airstrikes on three vessels it says were operated by “designated terrorist organizations” and were engaged in narco-trafficking, U.S. Southern Command announced Tuesday.

SOUTHCOM says 11 people were killed in the airstrikes, all of them male. Footage provided by the military shows each of the vessels being struck. The Pentagon did not clarify where the strikes took place.

“Late on Feb. 16, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted three lethal kinetic strikes on three vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations. Intelligence confirmed the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes and were engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” SOUTHCOM said in a statement posted to X.

Eleven male narco-terrorists were killed during these actions, 4 on the first vessel in the Eastern Pacific, 4 on the second vessel in the Eastern Pacific, and 3 on the third vessel in the Caribbean. No U.S. military forces were harmed,” the statement continued.

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No U.S. military personnel were harmed in the operation, the command added.

US MILITARY LAUNCHES DEADLY STRIKE ON DRUG-TRAFFICKING VESSEL IN THE PACIFIC, LEAVING 2 DEAD AND 1 SURVIVOR

SOUTHCOM is responsible for military operations in Central and South America and the Caribbean, including counter-narcotics missions focused on disrupting drug trafficking networks that threaten U.S. interests.

The U.S. has now carried out at least 41 strikes on alleged drug-smuggling vessels, killing 144 people in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, as part of efforts to dismantle narco-terrorist networks operated by designated terrorist organizations.