Trump orders expanded focus on land-based drug trafficking following latest naval strike

Donald Trump, Virginia, U.S. October 5, 2025
Reuters

U.S. forces struck yet another vessel off Venezuela’s coast on Saturday evening, President Donald Trump said Sunday, alleging it was carrying illicit drugs. He added that Washington would now begin targeting drug trafficking on land, too.

Speaking at Naval Station Norfolk next to the USS Harry S. Truman, Trump declared, “In recent weeks, the Navy has supported our mission to blow the cartel terrorists the hell out of the water... we did another one last night. Now we just can’t find any, so now we’ll have to start looking about the land because they’ll be forced to go by land.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that the latest strike resulted in four fatalities and was part of an ongoing campaign against drug cartels designated as foreign terrorist organizations. He emphasized that the operations were conducted under the president’s war powers and international law. However, critics have raised concerns about the legal basis for such strikes and the bypassing of congressional approval.

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