US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth confirmed an airstrike on a vessel used for drug trafficking in the Eastern Pacific, killing four people. The operation was ordered by President Donald Trump and took place in international waters. This incident adds to recent bombings in the region targeting narcotrafficking networks linked to terrorist organizations.
On Wednesday, the US Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike against a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (OTD) in the Eastern Pacific. According to Secretary Pete Hegseth, the operation was ordered by President Donald Trump and was based on military intelligence identifying the ship as part of known drug trafficking routes, carrying narcotics.
“Today early, by order of President Trump, the Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike against another narcotrafficking vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization, OTD, in the Eastern Pacific,” Hegseth reported on his social media. The attack, in international waters, resulted in the deaths of the four crew members, described as “male narcoterrorists,” with no injuries to US forces.
Hegseth stressed that these actions are part of a sustained offensive against narcotrafficking networks protected by terrorist groups. “The Western Hemisphere is no longer a safe haven for narcoterrorists who bring drugs to our shores to poison Americans. The Department of War will continue to hunt them down and eliminate them wherever they operate,” he declared.
This bombing adds to a recent series: days earlier, Hegseth announced three strikes against four similar vessels, leaving 14 dead and one survivor. “Yesterday, under the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out three lethal kinetic strikes against four vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations, DTO, trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific,” he explained at that time.
These operations highlight Washington's strategy to combat narcotrafficking in the region, focusing on maritime targets linked to threats designated as terrorist.