Following a devastating strike on a Venezuelan vessel in the Caribbean that claimed 11 lives and sparked controversy over its legality and motive, the Trump administration has hinted at an extended military campaign against Latin American gangs.
Tuesday’s operation was the first known strike since earlier this summer, when President Donald Trump sent warships to the southern Caribbean. According to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the mission was a component of a larger effort to combat the trafficking of “narco-terrorists” in the area.
Hegseth told FOX & Friends, “We have assets in the air, assets in the water, and assets on ships because this is a deadly serious mission for us, and it won’t stop with just this strike.”
US President Donald Trump has warned that any drug traffickers operating in the Caribbean will face the same fate as the crew of a Venezuelan boat destroyed by American forces earlier this week. The strike killed 11 people and marked a major escalation in Washington’s counternarcotics campaign.
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The Pentagon has not confirmed whether the boat was hit by a drone, torpedo, or another weapon. Trump said “massive amounts of drugs” were recovered from the vessel and claimed the crew belonged to Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang that Washington labeled a terrorist group earlier this year.
Legal experts have raised questions about the strike, saying it may have breached international law. Mary Ellen O’Connell, a professor at Notre Dame, argued that the US had no legal authority to intentionally kill suspects in international waters.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accused Washington of staging the incident to justify intervention, warning that the US aims for “regime change.” His officials even claimed the video of the explosion shared by Trump was fake, though early checks by Reuters found no evidence to support that claim.
Inside Venezuela, reactions were divided. Opposition leader María Corina Machado supported the strike, calling Maduro the head of a “narco-terrorist regime” and praising Trump for targeting criminal networks. However, other opposition figures, like Henrique Capriles, questioned US claims about the identities of those killed, asking how officials could confirm they were Venezuelans.
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The US has recently expanded its military presence in the Caribbean with seven warships, a nuclear-powered submarine, and more than 4,500 sailors and Marines. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking in Mexico City, hinted that more strikes may already be underway, saying Trump is determined to wage war on narco-terrorist organizations.
Washington has also doubled its bounty on Maduro to $50 million, signaling that further action could follow. Analysts warn this strategy could heighten tensions across Latin America, as the US appears ready to mix its counternarcotics agenda with direct military force.
