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U.S. Says Pacific Strike Kills Two, First Reported Since Maduro Capture

SOUTHCOM links the action to Operation Southern Spear targeting narco‑trafficking, with the Coast Guard alerted for a rescue.

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A video of a boat posted to X by the U.S. Southern Command that shows a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel.

Overview

  • Southern Command said Joint Task Force Southern Spear, directed by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, struck a vessel in the eastern Pacific that it described as operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations.
  • Two people were reported killed and one survived, with SOUTHCOM stating it notified the U.S. Coast Guard to activate search and rescue for the survivor.
  • This was the first publicly announced boat strike since the Jan. 3 capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, according to multiple outlets.
  • The campaign, presented as an effort to disrupt maritime narcotics routes, has featured dozens of strikes since September across the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.
  • Cumulative tallies remain inconsistent across reports, with counts near 35 strikes and deaths reported from roughly 114 to 125, while legal scrutiny persists over targeting practices and the lack of publicly released evidence.