United States President Donald Trump shared a video of a US military attack on a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean, as he also confirmed that the two survivors of the vessel would be repatriated to their home countries of Ecuador and Colombia “for detention and prosecution.” The military rescued the pair after they hit an underwater vessel on Thursday, October 16, in what was at least the sixth attack since early September. In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump called the destruction of the drug vessel by US missiles “his honor” as he claimed it was loaded with fentanyl and other narcotics. “It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG CARRYING SUBMARINE that was sailing to the United States on a known narcotics smuggling transit route. US intelligence confirmed this vessel was loaded with mostly Fentanyl, and other illegal narcotics,” said Donald Trump. He continued that there were four known narco-terrorists on board the vessel. The Republican president said two people on board were killed. “Two of the terrorists are dead. At least 25,000 Americans would die if I allow this submarine to come ashore. The two surviving terrorists are being returned to their countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia, for detention and prosecution,” he said. The US president went on to add: “No US forces were harmed in this attack. Under my watch, the United States of America will not tolerate narco-terrorists who traffic illegal drugs, by land or sea.” The strike, which Trump announced on Friday, October 17, was the latest in an unprecedented US military campaign that he says is aimed at choking off the flow of drugs from Latin America to the United States. Also read | Is CIA Conducting ‘Covert Operations’ Inside Venezuela? Trump says ‘look to land for further strikes’ At least six vessels, most of them speedboats, have been targeted by US strikes in the Caribbean since September, with Venezuela said to have originated some of them. Washington has claimed his campaign is dealing a decisive blow to drug trafficking, but has yet to provide evidence that the at least 27 people killed were actually drug traffickers. Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Trinidad and Tobago urged Americans to avoid US government facilities in the two-island nation. The advisory comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Venezuela following deadly US strikes in Caribbean waters targeting suspected drug smugglers. (With agency input)
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