By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that U.S. military on Tuesday launched 2 strikes targeted two boats allegedly transporting narcotics in international waters in the eastern Pacific on Sunday, which killed all six aboard.
Hegseth said in a post on social media “Yesterday, at the direction of President Trump, two lethal kinetic strikes were conducted on two vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations,”
“Both strikes were conducted in international waters and 3 male narco-terrorists were aboard each vessel. All 6 were killed. No U.S. forces were harmed,” he said.
The Pentagon’s latest boat strikes have so far claimed at least 75 lives in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since Sept. 2.US administration has expanded its military presence across the Caribbean since August.
U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean is the largest in the region in more than three decades, and the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford is expected to arrive in the Caribbean in mid-November.
The continuous strikes and military buildup have raised widespread speculation about the White House’s motive, media reported.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has condemned Washington’s actions as attempts to overthrow his government and expand U.S. military influence in Latin America.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro accused the U.S. government of “murder” for the killings at sea.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he has not yet decided whether the United States will launch ground strikes inside Venezuela, contradicting media reports that his administration will attack Venezuelan military facilities.
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