U.S. Strikes Three More Drug Boats, Kills Eight Narco?Terrorists in Eastern Pacific
The U.S. military carried out three more lethal strikes against suspected drug?trafficking vessels in the Eastern Pacific on Monday, killing eight men identified as members of Designated Terrorist Organizations, according to U.S. officials.
The strikes were authorized by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and executed by Joint Task Force Southern Spear in international waters. U.S. Southern Command confirmed that intelligence had identified the vessels as operating along known narco?trafficking routes and actively transporting illicit drugs bound for the United States.
According to Southern Command, the first vessel strike killed three narco?terrorists, the second killed two, and the third killed three more. Video footage of the strikes was released by the military, showing the coordinated destruction of the boats at sea.
These latest actions continue President Donald Trump’s aggressive campaign against drug cartels, which his administration has formally designated as terrorist organizations. Since September, U.S. forces have struck 25 trafficking vessels, killing an estimated 95 suspected drug traffickers tied to cartel operations.
In an October memo to Congress, Trump stated that the United States is now engaged in an armed conflict with transnational drug cartels due to the scale of death and destabilization caused by fentanyl and other narcotics. Groups such as Tren de Aragua and MS?13 have already been designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the State Department.
Democrats have predictably objected to the strikes, claiming the administration has not provided sufficient evidence to justify the use of military force. Last week, Admiral Frank Bradley faced questioning from the Senate Intelligence Committee over a follow?up strike that targeted survivors of an earlier attack on a Tren de Aragua?linked vessel.
Republicans pushed back hard. Senator Tom Cotton said the operations were both lawful and necessary, dismissing Democratic criticism as detached from reality.
“These are narco?terrorists bringing poison to our shores,” Cotton said. “They’ve killed millions of Americans and thousands of Arkansans. These strikes need to continue.”
The issue is now spilling into Congress. The House recently passed the National Defense Authorization Act with a provision requiring Hegseth to provide lawmakers with strike footage or face cuts to his travel budget. The move was widely seen as an attempt to pressure and slow down the administration’s anti?cartel campaign.
Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are scheduled to brief lawmakers on Tuesday regarding the strikes and broader U.S. strategy toward Venezuela, where many trafficking routes originate or pass through.
For the Trump administration, the message remains unchanged. Drug cartels are no longer being treated as criminal enterprises, but as enemy combatants. And for those moving narcotics toward the United States by sea, the warning is now unmistakable.