The United States killed four people in a strike against a vessel allegedly carrying illegal drugs just off the coast of Venezuela, U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday, at least the fourth such attack in recent weeks.
The strike is the latest example of U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to use U.S. military power in new, and often legally contentious, ways, from deploying active-duty U.S. troops in Los Angeles, to carrying out counter-terrorism strikes against drug trafficking suspects.
Hegseth said Friday's strike was carried out in international waters and that all of the people killed were men. He said the vessel was transporting "substantial amounts of narcotics - headed to America to poison our people."
"These strikes will continue until the attacks on the American people are over!!!!," Hegseth said in a post on X.
In a nearly 40-second video shared by Hegseth, a vessel can be seen moving through the water before a web of projectiles fall on the boat and the surrounding water, causing the boat to explode on impact.
Hegseth said, without providing evidence, that the intelligence "without a doubt" confirmed that the vessel was carrying drugs and that the people on board were "narco-terrorists."
He did not disclose the amount or type of the alleged drugs on board the vessel.
Trump, also without providing evidence, said the boat had enough drugs to kill 25,000 to 50,000 people.
The Venezuelan communications ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
A torpedo from a U.S. submarine sunk an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, U.S. Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth told reporters as ...
A U.S. submarine strike sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, leaving at least 80 dead, the country&...
The election of Iran’s next supreme leader could provide an opportunity to end the ongoing regional war involving Israel, the U.S. and ...
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the United States is making gains in its conflict with Iran after a key I...
The U.S. Department of Defense has released a video of a submarine strike on an Iranian warship off the southern Sri Lankan coast. At least 80 peop...
A U.S. submarine strike sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, leaving at least 80 dead, the country’s deputy foreign minister said. Meanwhile, Iran postponed the funeral of its late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, according to state media.
The election of Iran’s next supreme leader could provide an opportunity to end the ongoing regional war involving Israel, the U.S. and Iran, Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the United States is making gains in its conflict with Iran after a key Iranian naval target was destroyed, confirming that the strike was carried out by a U.S. submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka. Rescue efforts are now under way for the ship’s crew.
The U.S. Department of Defense has released a video of a submarine strike on an Iranian warship off the southern Sri Lankan coast. At least 80 people died in the U.S. attack on the vessel, Sri Lanka's Deputy Foreign Minister said.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. military has enough stockpiled weapons to fight wars "forever"; in a social media post late on Monday. The remarks came hours before conflict in Iran and the Middle East entered its fourth day.
U.S. first lady, Melania Trump chaired a UN Security Council meeting on children and education in conflict on Monday (2 March), a move criticised by Iran as hypocritical following U.S. and Israeli strikes that triggered a UN warning about risks to children.
A torpedo from a U.S. submarine sunk an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, U.S. Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth told reporters as the Iranian conflcit entered its fifth day on Wednesday.
The U.S. embassy in Riyadh was hit by two drones resulting in a limited fire and some material damage, the kingdom's defence ministry said in a post on X on Tuesday, citing an initial assessment.
Shahid Motahari Sub-Speciality Hospital in northern Tehran and parts of the Golestan Palace were bombed on day two of the U.S.‑Israel strikes. AnewZ Touraj Shiralilou is in Iran's capital city and said that the facility was flattened in an airstrike.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the United States is making gains in its conflict with Iran after a key Iranian naval target was destroyed, confirming that the strike was carried out by a U.S. submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka. Rescue efforts are now under way for the ship’s crew.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 4th of February, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Strikes across the Middle East are intensifying, fuelling travel disruption, driving up global energy prices and forcing diplomatic missions to shut their doors.
U.S. President Donald Trump has said the United States has a “virtually unlimited supply” of munitions and is capable of sustaining military action indefinitely, as the conflict with Iran entered its fourth day.
The United Nations has called for an investigation into a deadly attack on a girls’ primary school in Iran, which Iranian officials say has killed more than 100 children. The U.S. has said its forces “would not” deliberately target a school.
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