Overview
- U.S. Southern Command confirmed a Nov. 10 strike on a suspected narcotics vessel that killed four people and released video of the attack, bringing the operation’s reported death toll since August to nearly 80.
- President Donald Trump said he has made up his mind on next steps regarding Venezuela after Oval Office briefings with Secretary Pete Hegseth and senior Pentagon leaders, but he declined to disclose details.
- Venezuela denounced the U.S. actions and mobilized about 123,000 troops and militia members, ordered exercises, and placed anti‑tank obstacles on key routes, portraying the deployment as a threat.
- The campaign—branded Lanza del Sur—features major U.S. assets including the carrier Gerald R. Ford, missile destroyers, submarines, F‑35s, special operations units, and an estimated buildup of roughly 15,000 personnel.
- The White House frames the targets as narcoterrorist vessels, while UN human‑rights officials decry extrajudicial killings and AP reporting indicates several of the dead were fishermen or day laborers, a debate sharpened by a Coast Guard record of 225 tonnes of cocaine seized last year.