Overview
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said U.S. forces, acting on President Trump’s orders, struck a vessel in international waters in the Caribbean, killing three men he labeled 'narco‑terrorists' linked to a Designated Terrorist Organization.
- Hegseth released an obfuscated strike video and asserted the boat carried narcotics along a known smuggling route, but the administration has not publicly produced corroborating evidence.
- The operation is the latest in at least 15 publicly acknowledged strikes since early September across the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, with an official death toll in the mid‑60s.
- U.N. human rights chief Volker Türk condemned the killings as unacceptable under international law and urged Washington to halt the attacks.
- Bipartisan lawmakers are pressing for transparency, requesting legal opinions and lists of targetable entities after briefings left members unsatisfied, while the Pentagon reinforces the region with assets including the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group and F‑35s.