US forces on Monday attacked three alleged drug-trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing eight people, according to US Southern Command.
“On December 15, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted lethal kinetic strikes against three ships operated by designated terrorist organizations in international waters,” SOUTHCOM wrote on Twitter.
At least 95 people have been killed so far in attacks on suspected drug boats as part of a campaign called Operation Southern Spear, which the Trump administration has said aims to crack down on drug trafficking. According to another social media post from the US Southern Command, the US military recently attacked a suspected drug boat in the eastern Pacific on December 4, killing four people on board the boat.
The latest attacks come at a time when questions continue to be raised about the Trump administration’s aggressive stance on alleged drug boats.
The Trump administration has told Congress that the US is in an “armed conflict” against drug cartels, which began with its first attack on September 2. CNN previously reported that the US military had launched a follow-up attack on a suspected drug vessel operating in the Caribbean that day, killing not everyone on board in the initial attack, which some Democratic lawmakers and legal experts said could amount to a war crime.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, said Monday that there would be a briefing of all senators on the attacks on Tuesday, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“The American people deserve surveillance. We intend to get it done,” he said in a post on Twitter.
Rubio and Hegseth are also expected to provide a classified briefing for House lawmakers on Tuesday, according to two sources familiar with the plans.
The administration has labeled those killed as “unlawful combatants” and claimed the ability to engage in lethal attacks without judicial review due to a classified Justice Department investigation.
The attacks are part of a month-long pressure campaign on Venezuela that has included moving thousands of troops and a carrier strike group to the Caribbean and making repeated threats against President Nicolas Maduro.
Last week, the US announced new sanctions on shipping companies and boats that help transport Venezuelan oil, a day after seizing a sanctioned tanker off the country’s coast.
This story has been updated with additional details.
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