The United States military carried out another strike on a vessel in the Caribbean Sea suspected of drug trafficking, killing three people, according to an official statement released Friday.
US Southern Command stated that the targeted boat was operating along known narcotics trafficking routes and was actively engaged in drug smuggling operations at the time of the strike.
An 11-second video shared on social media platform X shows the vessel moving through open waters before being hit by what the military described as a “lethal kinetic strike,” triggering a large explosion.
No evidence was publicly provided to substantiate the claim that the vessel was involved in narcotics trafficking.
The latest strike is part of an expanded US military campaign targeting alleged drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. Since early September, the Trump administration has conducted at least 38 such operations aimed at disrupting international drug trafficking networks.
US President Donald Trump has defended the strikes as a necessary escalation, asserting that the United States is in an “armed conflict” with Latin American drug cartels.
Friday’s operation brings the reported death toll from these maritime strikes to at least 133, based on official figures. However, US authorities have released limited evidence to support claims that those killed were “narcoterrorists.”
The operations have drawn criticism from legal experts and human rights advocates, who question the legality of conducting lethal strikes in international waters without judicial oversight.
Last week, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed on his personal social media account that “some top cartel drug-traffickers” had decided to cease narcotics operations indefinitely due to what he described as highly effective strikes in the Caribbean. He did not provide further details or supporting evidence.
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