The U.S. military conducted another deadly strike against alleged drug smugglers in the Caribbean Sea, killing three people, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Saturday.
Hegseth said in a post on X that the targeted vessel was linked to a U.S.-designated terrorist group, though he did not specify which one. He added that intelligence confirmed the vessel was carrying narcotics along a known trafficking route.
This marks at least the 15th U.S. military strike in the Caribbean or eastern Pacific since early September, bringing the total death toll to at least 64.
Hegseth defended the campaign, saying, “Narco-terrorists are bringing drugs to our shores to poison Americans, and we will treat them exactly how we treated al-Qaeda.”
President Donald Trump has described the operations as part of an “armed conflict” against drug cartels, using the same legal framework that authorized the war on terror after 9/11. He argues the strikes are necessary to curb drug trafficking into the U.S.
However, members of Congress, particularly Senate Democrats, have pressed the administration to disclose its legal justification and identify which cartels and individuals have been targeted.
On Friday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and several Democratic senators sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Hegseth, and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard demanding all related legal opinions and a full list of groups deemed targetable.
The letter accused the administration of sharing “contradictory and selective information” with lawmakers. Earlier correspondence from the Senate Armed Services Committee had also requested a clear explanation of the administration’s rationale for designating cartels as terrorist organizations.
