On Monday evening, the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) announced that the U.S. military executed a “lethal kinetic attack” on a vessel operated by a terrorist organization in international waters as part of Operation Southern Spear. This has resulted in the deaths of two narco-terrorists.
SOUTHCOM released a 22-second clip of the operation and indicated it was conducted under the direction of U.S. Army Secretary Pete Hegseth.
According to intelligence reports, the targeted vessel was using known drug trafficking lanes in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and was actively involved in drug trafficking. The operation led to the death of two male narco-terrorists, while there were no casualties among U.S. forces, as stated by SOUTHCOM.
The strike on Monday marked 30 days since the initiation of these operations, which began last month. This operation is historic as such interventions against drug-trafficking vessels in international waters have been ongoing since September under Operation Southern Spear, targeting transnational maritime drug trafficking networks. To date, military operations have resulted in the deaths of at least 106 drug traffickers without impacting U.S. military personnel.
These sustained military efforts come as President Donald Trump has deployed U.S. troops to international waters in the Caribbean to combat the influx of drugs into the U.S. In stark contrast, Venezuela’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, faces multiple drug-terrorism charges from U.S. authorities. He claims the U.S. anti-drug initiatives are a facade for an invasion aimed at regime change.
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During an interview on Friday, President Trump disclosed that the U.S. military had targeted and “destroyed” a “large facility” in Venezuela but withheld specifics.
He mentioned, “I don’t know if you read or saw it, but they have big factories, big facilities where they send ships, where ships come from. Two nights ago, we defeated that. So we hit them very hard,” President Trump explained.
On Monday, Trump reiterates to reporters that the military had “attacked” sites in Venezuela where drug shipments were loaded onto boats.
He stated, “There was a huge explosion in the pier area where they load drugs onto boats. So we hit all the boats and now we hit that area.”
As of press time, neither President Maduro nor his regime had publicly commented on Trump’s statements. Meanwhile, Venezuela’s state media and the limited independent news organizations left in the country were silent regarding the military action.
Conversely, Telesur, a media platform funded by the Maduro government, reported that “Venezuela has an exemplary and unique model in South America for combating crime, organized crime, and drug trafficking by air, land, and sea,” according to Maduro during an official military event on Monday.
