US Strike Kills Six on Suspected Drug Boat Near Venezuela

In his social media post, the President said that those killed in the attack were on the ship and that no US forces were harmed. It was the fifth deadly attack in the Caribbean as the Trump administration claimed it was treating alleged drug traffickers as illegal combatants who should be responded to with military force.

Trump, who released a video as in the past, said that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave the order for the attack on Tuesday morning. Hegseth later shared the video in a post on X.

The black-and-white video showed a small boat sitting motionless on the water. Seconds into the video, a bullet hits it from above and explodes. The boat is then seen floating in flames for several seconds.

Trump said the attack took place in international waters and that “intelligence” confirmed that the ship was smuggling drugs, was affiliated with “narcoterrorist networks” and was on a known drug smuggling route.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking more information about the latest boat attack, but a defense official confirmed the details in the social media post were accurate. The official was not authorized to speak publicly about the strike and spoke on condition of anonymity.

What could be the long-term impact? James Story, a former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela Affairs from 2018 to 2023, served during Trump’s first term and President Joe Biden’s presidency. He told The Associated Press that continued American attacks on boats in the Caribbean could ultimately hinder counternarcotics efforts. The attacks ruffled the feathers of longtime American allies in the region, such as Colombia, possibly “undermining our ability to collect intelligence” from allies to take down drug trafficking organizations, Story said.

“If they believe that the intelligence they are providing us will result in what some might describe as an extrajudicial killing, and no one here is sympathetic to the plight of drug traffickers… that puts us in a pretty bad position,” Story said. “This puts us in violation of international law and undermines our ability to operate in the hemisphere.”

Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, disillusionment with the Trump administration is growing among members of both major political parties. Some Republicans want more information from the White House about the legal justification and details of the attacks. Democrats argue the attacks violate U.S. and international law.

The Senate last week voted on a war powers resolution that would prohibit the Trump administration from carrying out strikes unless Congress specifically authorizes it, but the resolution failed to pass.

In a memo to Congress obtained by The Associated Press, the Trump administration said it “has been determined that the United States is engaged in a non-international armed conflict with these terrorist organizations” and that Trump has directed the Pentagon to “conduct operations against them in accordance with the law of armed conflict.”

The Trump administration has yet to provide lawmakers with key evidence proving that the boats targeted by the U.S. military were actually carrying narcotics, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the matter who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Congressman says Trump’s authority on this issue is limited California Senator Adam Schiff, who pressed for a vote on the Venezuela bill last week, said in a post on X that the president’s authority to respond to a shooting or threat of a shooting is limited and does not apply.

“These continued attacks (27 killed to date) risk plunging the United States into a full-fledged war,” Schiff said. He said he would push for a new vote if the strikes continue.

The attacks followed an unprecedented build-up of US naval forces in the Caribbean.

Following Tuesday’s strike, Jorge Rodríguez, speaker of Venezuela’s National Assembly and a close ally of President Nicolás Maduro, called on the press to combat US “lies” being used to justify a possible invasion.

The government had gathered foreign media and dozens of local media leaders for Rodríguez’s message.

“The goal is to seek the truth and not fight drug trafficking,” Rodríguez said. It’s about “finding an excuse for aggression.”

“We don’t want you to make up anything, we want you to stand for the truth,” he said.