The US military carried out its ninth strike against an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the eastern Pacific on Wednesday, resulting in three deaths, according to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. This action marks an expansion of US President Donald Trump’s administration’s efforts to combat alleged drug trafficking in South America, according to AP. This strike came after another attack on Tuesday evening in the same region, in which two people were killed, Hegseth shared on social media earlier in the day. Unlike the previous seven US attacks, which targeted vessels in the Caribbean, these recent attacks took place in the eastern Pacific. Since the attack began last month, the total number of deaths has reached at least 37. The strikes mark a widening of the military’s focus area, which now extends to the waters near South America, a key route for cocaine smuggling from the world’s biggest producers. Hegseth’s social media posts also drew a direct comparison between the US war on terrorism launched after the September 11, 2001 attacks and the Trump administration’s stepped-up crackdown. Hegseth stated, “Just as al-Qaeda waged war on our homeland, these cartels are waging war on our border and our people. There will be no refuge or forgiveness – only justice.” Later Wednesday, he described the alleged drug runners as “the ‘Al Qaeda’ of our hemisphere.” Trump has defended the strikes by arguing the United States is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and by calling the criminal groups illegal fighters, citing the same legal justification used by George W. Bush’s administration for the war on terrorism. Regarding the possibility of strikes on land, Trump said after the recent boat attack that “we have legal authority. We are allowed to do that.” He warned: “We’ll hit them very hard when they come in across the country. We’re perfectly willing to do that. And we’ll probably go back to Congress and explain exactly what we’re doing when we come into the country.” Hegseth shares videos showing explosions hitting boats. A small boat with several brown packages is seen on the water in the first short video posted by Hegseth on Wednesday. After a few seconds, the boat explodes and is left motionless, engulfed in flames. The second video captures another boat speeding on before it is hit by an explosion. Footage recorded afterwards shows packages floating in the water. Since this summer, the US military has deployed an unusually large force in the Caribbean Sea and near the coast of Venezuela, fueling speculation that Trump may seek to topple Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who is facing narco-terrorism charges in the US. (With input from AP)
Drug boat strike: Ninth US attack on alleged drug-carrying vessel kills three in Pacific; total deaths rise to 37
