A US military strike has killed two suspected narco-terrorists in the Eastern Pacific
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The U.S. military carried out a deadly strike Wednesday on a ship it said was involved in drug trafficking in the Eastern Pacific, killing two men it described as “drug terrorists,” according to the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM).
“On June 3rd, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a deadly strike against a vessel owned by Terrorized Terrorist Organizations,” SOUTHCOM said on the X site.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was traveling on known drug trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in drug trafficking.”
The military said two suspected drug terrorists were killed. SOUTHCOM did not say if there were any survivors.
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A video released by the US Southern Command shows a suspected drug-trafficking vessel before it was hit during an operation in the Eastern Pacific. (US Southern Command)
No US military personnel were injured, the command said.
SOUTHCOM also released a short video showing the ship running through the water before it burst into flames.
The latest strike brings to at least 207 the number of people killed in a US war targeting suspected drug-trafficking vessels since the Trump administration launched a broad crackdown aimed at dismantling cartel-linked smuggling networks in September, according to the Associated Press.
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A suspected drug smuggling vessel burst into flames following a US military strike, according to the US Southern Command. (US Southern Command)
Wednesday’s strike followed a series of similar strikes in recent weeks.
On Saturday, the US military raided a ship in the Eastern Pacific, killing three suspected drug terrorists, according to SOUTHCOM.
A separate strike on Friday killed three men, while another operation last Wednesday killed two, the military said.
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Gen. Francis L. Donovan, commander of the US Southern Command, directed the operation that targeted the suspected drug-trafficking vessel in the Eastern Pacific, according to SOUTHCOM. (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)
SOUTHCOM also carried out a strike last Tuesday which reportedly killed one person and left two others alive.
Earlier in May, the command said that an operation in the Mpumalanga Pacific killed two narco-terrorists and left one survivor.
The military released brief videos and statements describing the ships as tied to designated terrorist organizations, but generally did not release evidence identifying those killed or proving the ships were carrying drugs. The campaign has drawn scrutiny from lawmakers, legal experts and human rights groups who question the legal basis for using lethal force against suspected smugglers outside the traditional battlefield.
The Eastern Pacific and the Caribbean remain the main areas for drug trafficking, as cartels often use small, fast-moving vessels to transport drugs to the United States and Central America.
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Officials say the vessel has ties to designated terrorist organizations and is involved in drug smuggling. (US Southern Command)
SOUTHCOM oversees US military operations in Central and South America and the Caribbean, including counter-narcotics operations aimed at disrupting trafficking networks tied to international criminal organizations.
The video released on Wednesday was in black and white, similar to many of the images previously shared by SOUTHCOM.
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However, last week, the military sent what appears to be the first color video showing a strike on a suspected drug-trafficking vessel.
Alex Nitzberg of Fox News Digital and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
