U.S. Says Pacific Strike Ordered by Trump Kills Four on Suspected Narco Boat

Overview

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said U.S. forces hit a vessel in the Eastern Pacific in international waters, killing four men on what the Pentagon describes as a terrorist-operated narcotrafficking boat.
• The action, ordered by President Trump, raises the government’s reported toll to at least 62 deaths in a campaign that has targeted roughly 15 boats across the Caribbean and Pacific since early October.
• The Pentagon released video of the blast and reported no U.S. casualties, but it has not provided publicly verifiable evidence that the vessel was carrying drugs.
• UN-appointed experts have warned the maritime strikes could violate international law and amount to extrajudicial killings, fueling diplomatic concerns in Latin America.
• U.S. forces have expanded their regional presence with the Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group and bomber flights, while Mexico said searches for a lone survivor from earlier strikes were unsuccessful.