Pentagon releases footage of U.S. strikes on suspected drug vessels

The Pentagon has released video showing U.S. military strikes on three vessels in the eastern Pacific that Washington says were involved in narcotics trafficking, operations that U.S. Southern Command said killed eight people on Monday (15 December).

"Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and were engaged in narco-trafficking," the military said in a post on X.

According to the U.S. military, intelligence assessments concluded that the vessels were travelling along established narcotics trafficking routes and were actively engaged in drug smuggling. The military said the operation resulted in the deaths of eight men.

The strikes form part of a wider U.S. campaign against maritime drug trafficking launched under President Donald Trump. U.S. officials say more than 20 vessels have been targeted across the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, including areas near Venezuela.

U.S. authorities estimate that at least 90 suspected drug smugglers have been killed since the campaign began. Washington argues the operations are lawful and aimed at disrupting transnational criminal networks that move drugs by sea toward North America.

The use of military force against suspected drug trafficking vessels represents a significant shift from previous U.S. approaches, which have typically relied on law enforcement interdictions and arrests.

• Trump: Land strikes will target ‘anybody’ involved in drug trade
• Trump: U.S. will soon take action against Venezuelan drug traffickers on land
• Hegseth: U.S. plans further troop deployments to fight drug trafficking

Some legal experts have questioned the strikes, arguing that they could constitute unlawful extrajudicial killings under international law, a claim the Trump administration has rejected.

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