Overview

• The notice says the United States is in a non‑international armed conflict with cartels designated as terrorist organizations and labels suspected members as unlawful combatants.
• It offers legal justification for three September strikes on alleged smuggling boats in the southern Caribbean that killed 17 people, including a Sept. 15 attack the memo says destroyed the vessel, narcotics and three unlawful combatants.
• Lawmakers and legal experts questioned the rationale and due‑process basis for killing suspected traffickers at sea, with Democrats pressing for congressional authorization under the War Powers Act.
• The memo did not identify which cartels are covered, and Pentagon officials could not provide a list to briefed lawmakers, escalating concerns about transparency and oversight.
• Venezuela condemned U.S. military activity near its coast as a provocation as U.S. forces remain deployed in the region with warships and F‑35s, and the administration argues cartel operations amount to armed attacks causing tens of thousands of U.S. overdose deaths each year.