Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth announced that the U.S. military on Wednesday struck another boat carrying people he claims were narco-terrorists.
The strikes were carried out in the Eastern Pacific region at the direction of President Donald Trump, killing four men on board, according to Hegseth.
The military “carried out a lethal kinetic strike on yet another narco-trafficking vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO) in the Eastern Pacific,” Hegseth wrote on X.
“This vessel, like all the others, was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics,” he said. “Four male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel—and killed—during the strike, which was conducted in international waters. No U.S. forces were harmed in this strike.”
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“The Western Hemisphere is no longer a safe haven for narco-terrorists bringing drugs to our shores to poison Americans,” Hegseth added. “The Department of War will continue to hunt them down and eliminate them wherever they operate.”
This is the 14th strike on suspected drug boats carried out since September. A total of 61 have reportedly been killed while three survived, including at least two who were later repatriated to their home countries.
The Pentagon has refused to release the identities of those killed or evidence of drugs on board.
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The Trump administration has been scrutinized in recent weeks over the strikes, including by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who raised concerns about killing people without due process and the possibility of killing innocent people.
Paul has cited Coast Guard statistics that show a significant percentage of boats boarded for suspicion of drug trafficking are innocent.
The senator has also argued that if the administration plans to engage in a war with Venezuela, as it has targeted boats it claims are transporting drugs for the Venezuela-linked Tren de Aragua gang, it must seek a declaration of war from Congress.
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee also penned a letter on Wednesday demanding to review the legal justification behind the series of boat strikes they say appear to violate several laws.
“Drug trafficking is a terrible crime that has had devastating impacts on American families and communities and should be prosecuted. Nonetheless, the President’s actions to hold alleged drug traffickers accountable must still conform with the law,” the letter reads.
