Overview

• At the United Nations, President Trump warned traffickers that U.S. forces would “blow you out of existence” and claimed without providing evidence that every boat hit carried drugs capable of killing more than 25,000 Americans.
• The Dominican Republic’s drug agency reported seizing 1,000 kilograms of cocaine in 377 packages from a struck speedboat about 80 nautical miles south of Isla Beata during a joint action with U.S. authorities.
• U.S. officials have announced at least three strikes on alleged drug boats linked to Venezuela, with one strike killing 11 people and reporting indicating at least 17 deaths in total, alongside a regional buildup that includes warships, an attack submarine and F-35 fighters.
• Activist groups condemned the operations as killings without judicial process, and two Democratic senators introduced a resolution seeking to block further strikes.
• Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro denied leading trafficking networks, proposed talks via envoy Richard Grenell, and rejected U.S. claims about Venezuela’s role in the drug trade.