Overview
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said two lethal strikes on Sunday targeted vessels in international waters operated by designated terrorist organizations at the direction of President Trump.
- Hegseth asserted the boats were on a known trafficking route and carrying narcotics, posting short videos of explosions; U.S. officials have not released independent evidence or the identities of those killed.
- The campaign now totals at least 19 known strikes with a death toll of at least 75 and about 20 boats destroyed, shifting from the Caribbean toward the eastern Pacific.
- The administration frames the effort as counterterrorism in an armed conflict with cartels, treating suspects as unlawful combatants and relying on Justice Department legal advice for maritime strikes.
- Lawmakers of both parties and the U.N. rights chief have pressed for evidence and investigations, as Congress received briefings and the Senate rejected a measure to curb potential action against Venezuela alongside a growing U.S. military buildup in the region.