The US military has launched another strike against an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean Sea, killing three people, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed on Saturday.
Hegseth said the targeted vessel was operated by a US-designated terrorist organization, though he did not name the group. He described the strike as part of ongoing efforts to curb the flow of narcotics to the United States.
This marks at least the 15th US military strike in the Caribbean or eastern Pacific since early September. The operations have now killed at least 64 people.
Hegseth stated on X that intelligence indicated the vessel “was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics.” He added that the US military would treat such “narco-terrorists” similarly to Al-Qaeda in counterterrorism operations.
President Donald Trump has justified the strikes as part of an “armed conflict” with drug cartels, citing legal authority similar to that used after the September 11 attacks.
Lawmakers, however, continue to push for transparency. Senate Democrats recently wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Hegseth demanding detailed legal opinions and a list of targetable groups. Signatories included Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senators Jack Reed, Jeanne Shaheen, Mark Warner, Chris Coons, Patty Murray, and Brian Schatz.
The letter criticized the administration for providing “selective and sometimes contradictory information” while withholding details from other members of Congress. Earlier letters from the Senate Armed Services Committee also requested the administration’s legal rationale and the specific cartels designated as terrorist organizations.
The strikes highlight the administration’s intensifying military approach to combating drug trafficking in the region, even as legal and political scrutiny continues.
