Overview
- Sources tell CNN the military executed a follow-up strike on September 2 that killed survivors from a disabled suspected drug boat, bringing the death toll on that vessel to 11.
- Reporting cited by multiple outlets says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a verbal directive to leave no survivors, while the Pentagon’s chief spokesman called that narrative completely false.
- Officials briefed Congress that the second strike was to sink a navigation hazard, but lawmakers and law-of-war experts say killing incapacitated people would be unlawful and could amount to extrajudicial killings.
- The Justice Department produced a classified memo asserting authority to target 24 criminal groups, even as briefings acknowledge the military often does not know the identities of those killed and relies on assessments that drugs are aboard.
- The campaign has killed more than 80 people since early September, has prompted the U.K. to halt related intelligence sharing, and has fueled internal dissent including SOUTHCOM’s commander offering to leave his post.