‘Aggressive’: Shock twist in Donald Trump’s boat strategy
Dozens of people have been killed as the Trump administration dramatically shifts a key strategy, in a move that’s sparked uproar.
The Donald Trump administration has dramatically shifted its strategy as it attempts to curb drug trafficking, in a move that has sparked uproar.
In recent weeks the Pentagon has targeted suspected narcotraffickers in the Pacific Ocean, instead of only the Caribbean Sea amid reports officials have stronger evidence linking cocaine transport from western routes to the US.
According to CNN, sources claim that cocaine is much more likely to be trafficked from Colombia or Mexico, rather than Venezuela. The intelligence raises questions about the US military build-up in the Caribbean Sea.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth noted that the last four US military strikes targeting suspected drug smugglers were carried out in the eastern Pacific.
Future attacks are likely to be concentrated in that area due to stronger links to US markets, according to unnamed sources.
More than 15 US strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific have killed at least 65 people in recent weeks, prompting criticism from governments in the region.
“At the direction of the President, the Department of War is taking the fight to the cartels and defending our Homeland from Designated Terrorist Organization’s illicit activities before their violence and poison reaches our shores – this includes all of our nation’s borders,” a Pentagon official told CNN.
“The Department’s newly established counter-narcotics Joint Task Force is expanding efforts on both the East and West Coasts to counter illicit drug trafficking by narco-terrorists using maritime routes.”
Mr Hegseth posted on X about a strike in the eastern Pacific on October 30 that killed four people, writing: “Earlier today, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike on yet another narco-trafficking vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO) in the Eastern Pacific.
“This vessel, like all the others, was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics.
“Four male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel – and killed – during the strike, which was conducted in international waters.”
Mr Hegseth said no US forces were harmed in the strike.
He continued: “The Western Hemisphere is no longer a safe haven for narco-terrorists bringing drugs to our shores to poison Americans. The Department of War will continue to hunt them down and eliminate them wherever they operate.”
The day prior, Mr Hegseth posted about another strike in the eastern Pacific, this time 14 people were killed.
“Yesterday, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out three lethal kinetic strikes on four vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations (DTO) trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific.
“The four vessels were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics,” he continued.
“Eight male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessels during the first strike. Four male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel during the second strike. Three male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel during the third strike. A total of 14 narco-terrorists were killed during the three strikes, with one survivor. All strikes were in international waters with no U.S. forces harmed.”
Mr Hegseth said a search was commenced for the survivor.
Bloodshed in the Caribbean
The United States has also deployed Navy ships to the Caribbean and on Saturday, three people were killed during a US strike on an alleged drug-trafficking vessel.
The latest strike hit “another narco-trafficking vessel … in the Caribbean,” Mr Hegseth wrote on social media.
“This vessel – like EVERY OTHER – was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling,” he said.
“Three male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel during the strike, which was conducted in international waters. All three terrorists were killed.”
‘No justification’
Experts say the attacks, which began in early September, amount to extrajudicial killings even if they target known traffickers, and Washington has yet to make public any evidence that its targets were smuggling narcotics or posed a threat to the United States.
Mr Hegseth said Washington would continue to “hunt … and kill” alleged drug traffickers.
He shared video footage of the strike, showing the moment the vessel is hit, followed by a fireball.
Like previous videos released by the US government, areas on the boat are obfuscated, rendering it impossible to verify how many people were on board.
The United Nations has urged Washington to halt its strikes.
UN rights chief Volker Turk said these people had been killed “in circumstances that find no justification in international law”.
“These attacks – and their mounting human cost – are unacceptable,” he said in a statement.
Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro – who faces indictment on drug charges in the United States – accused Washington of using drug trafficking as a pretext for “imposing regime change” in Caracas to seize Venezuelan oil.
But Mr Trump has said he was not considering strikes against Venezuela, dialling back previous posturing.
Mr Maduro insists there is no drug cultivation in Venezuela, which he says is used as a trafficking route for Colombian cocaine against its will.
The Trump administration has said in a notice to Congress that the United States is engaged in “armed conflict” with Latin American drug cartels, describing them as terrorist groups as part of its justification for the strikes.
– With AFP
Originally published as ‘Aggressive’: Shock twist in Donald Trump’s boat strategy
