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U.S. Southern Command said Thursday it carried out another strike on a suspected drug-smuggling vessel in the Eastern Pacific, killing four men described as “narco-terrorists” amid continued scrutiny over the administration’s counternarcotics strategy.
The strike occurred in international waters and targeted a ship operated by a “Designated Terrorist Organization,” though officials did not identify the group.
“On Dec. 4, at the direction of [War Secretary] Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel in international waters operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization,” Southern Command said in a post on X.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was carrying illicit narcotics and transiting along a known narco-trafficking route in the Eastern Pacific. Four male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed,” it continued.
The operation is the latest in a series of strikes carried out under the Trump administration in its effort to disrupt drug routes used by groups the U.S. links to terrorism and transnational crime. The administration has conducted more than 20 such strikes in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, resulting in at least 87 deaths.
Thursday’s action follows renewed questions over a September incident in which a second strike was used to kill two survivors of an initial attack on a single drug vessel. Officials have defended the operations as necessary to counter threats posed by drug-smuggling networks, while critics have raised concerns about transparency and rules governing lethal force at sea.
Hegseth addressed the concerns about the drug boat operations in a recent statement to X.
“As usual, the fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland. As we’ve said from the beginning, and in every statement, these highly effective strikes are specifically intended to be ‘lethal, kinetic strikes,’” Hegseth wrote.
“The declared intent is to stop lethal drugs, destroy narco-boats, and kill the narco-terrorists who are poisoning the American people. Every trafficker we kill is affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization. The Biden administration preferred the kid gloves approach, allowing millions of people — including dangerous cartels and unvetted Afghans — to flood our communities with drugs and violence. The Trump administration has sealed the border and gone on offense against narco-terrorists. Biden coddled terrorists, we kill them,” he continued.
