Overview

• Trump affirmed authorizing CIA covert operations inside Venezuela and said the U.S. is considering strikes on land after weeks of maritime attacks.
• U.S. forces have destroyed at least five alleged drug‑smuggling boats since early September, with about 27 people killed, including six in the latest strike posted on Trump’s social media.
• A memo to Congress states the U.S. has entered a non‑international armed conflict with designated organizations, applying the law of armed conflict to justify lethal operations.
• Lawmakers from both parties and human rights groups are demanding underlying evidence that the targeted vessels carried narcotics and are questioning the scope and legality of the campaign.
• Venezuela condemned the moves as regime‑change efforts, announced plans to complain to the UN Security Council, and Trump declined to say whether the CIA is authorized to “take out” Nicolás Maduro while maintaining a $50 million bounty for his arrest.