President Donald Trump has announced that a strike carried out by the US military targeted and killed three individuals referred to as “narcoterrorists.”
Although the specific group and origin of the targeted vessel hit by a “lethal kinetic strike” remain undisclosed, Trump mentioned on his Truth Social media platform that it was associated with a Designated Terrorist Organization and was engaged in narcotrafficking in the USSOUTHCOM area.
USSOUTHCOM, or the US Southern Command, operates in Latin America south of Mexico, adjacent waters to Central and South America, and the Caribbean Sea.
Trump stated that intelligence reports confirmed the vessel’s involvement in trafficking illicit narcotics along a known narcotrafficking route aimed at harming Americans.
A video shared by Trump depicted the recent strike showing a speeding vessel being targeted by missiles, resulting in its destruction in a fiery explosion.
White House communications director Steven Cheung commented that the narcoterrorists realized their mistake at the moment of impact, as seen in the video.
The strike followed a previous operation that occurred on September 2 targeting a drug-carrying speedboat, allegedly operated by the Tren de Aragua gang, designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the US earlier in the year.
The Trump administration defended the military action as a necessary measure to disrupt drug flow into the United States.
Despite the administration’s justification, some senators, both Democrats and Republicans, along with human rights organizations, have raised concerns about the legality and potential overreach of executive authority in using the military for law enforcement purposes.
The administration has not provided details on how the military assessed the cargo and alleged gang affiliation of the passengers before the vessel attacks. National security officials informed Congress members that the first boat was fired upon multiple times after altering its course towards shore.
These strikes coincide with an increase in US maritime presence in the Caribbean and signify a significant change in the US approach to combating drug trafficking in the Western Hemisphere.
There are speculations in Venezuela that these actions might be part of a strategy to oust President Nicolás Maduro, a sentiment echoed by the Venezuelan leader himself.
Maduro dismissed the US video released by Trump after the first strike, claiming it was artificially created and that a boat of that size could not navigate high seas.
Recently, Maduro accused the Trump administration of using drug trafficking allegations as a pretext for a military operation aimed at intimidating and instigating regime change in Venezuela.
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