When President Donald Trump and Protection officers revealed on Sept. 2 that the U.S. army killed 11 alleged drug smugglers on a ship within the Caribbean Sea, they touted it as a hit of their struggle towards South American cartels.
Their preliminary feedback had been met with scrutiny because of the lack of particulars they offered. Extra questions arose months later after it was reported that survivors from the assault had been killed in a subsequent strike. The White Home later confirmed on Monday that there was a couple of strike on the boat.
PHOTO: President Trump introduced on his social media platform that he ordered U.S. army forces to conduct “a kinetic strike towards positively recognized Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists within the SOUTHCOM space of accountability.”
@realDonaldTrump/Fact Social
Trump first announced the strike on his social media website as a “kinetic strike towards positively recognized Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists within the SOUTHCOM space of accountability.”
The publish included a video of the strike that confirmed just one hit.
Trump alleged that the boat was beneath the management of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Maduro denied the allegations and criticized the U.S. for the assault.
Trump mentioned a day later {that a} “large” quantity of medication was on the boat, however offered little element.
“It was large quantities of medication coming into our nation to kill lots of people. And, all people totally understands that truth. You see it, you see the luggage of medication everywhere in the boat, they usually had been hit,” Trump informed reporters on the White Home on Sept. 3. “After they watch that tape, they are going to say, ‘Let’s not do that.'”
Pete Hegseth speaks throughout an announcement within the Oval Workplace of the White Home in Washington, DC, Sept. 2, 2025.
Al Drago/Bloomberg by way of Getty Pictures
That very same day, Protection Secretary Pete Hegseth additionally touted the strike throughout a “Fox & Mates” interview and refuted a Maduro spokesperson’s suggestion that the video was AI-generated.
“That was undoubtedly not synthetic intelligence. I watched it dwell,” he mentioned. “We knew precisely who was in that boat. We knew precisely what they had been doing, and we knew precisely who they represented.”
The administration would go on to report 20 extra strikes towards boats within the Caribbean and jap Pacific Ocean, killing 83 folks.
Hegseth spoke concerning the U.S. operation on Oct. 23 at a White Home occasion on combating drug cartels, arguing that suspects on the boats can be handled “like overseas terrorist organizations on the offense.”
“So the Division of Warfare just isn’t going to degrade, or simply merely arrest. We’ll defeat and destroy these terrorist organizations to defend the homeland on behalf of the American folks,” he mentioned.
His remarks got here every week after survivors had been reported following a strike on a ship within the Caribbean. The survivors ultimately had been launched to their dwelling nations of Colombia and Ecuador, which prevented them from protesting their detention in a U.S. courtroom.
When requested by ABC Information’ Mary Bruce about how survivors can be handled sooner or later, Hegseth responded, “We have got protocol of how we’ll deal with it,” however didn’t go into element.
On the similar occasion, Trump informed reporters that he did not plan to ask Congress for authority or declare struggle towards the cartels, and as an alternative he declared bluntly, “We’re simply going to kill folks which can be bringing medicine into our nation.”
Nonetheless, new questions arose concerning the legality of the assaults after a Nov. 28 Washington Publish report that mentioned the primary strike on Sept. 2 initially left two survivors clinging to the wreckage and that earlier than the strike Hegseth had given spoken orders to kill everybody on board.
The Publish report, which cited two “two folks with direct information of the operation,” alleged that Adm. Mitch Bradley, then-head of the Joint Particular Operations Command, ordered a second strike as a way to adjust to Hegseth’s preliminary orders and to make sure the survivors could not name on different suspected traffickers to retrieve them and their cargo.
Secretary of Protection Pete Hegseth holds a press convention on the Dominican Nationwide Palace in Santo Domingo on November 26, 2025.
Felix Leon/AFP by way of Getty Pictures
Members of Congress from each events had expressed considerations with the drug cartel operation, however within the days following the Washington Publish report, Republican and Democratic leaders on each the Home and Senate armed providers committees put out joint statements saying they had been wanting into the incident.
Hegseth pushed again towards the Publish’s report saying in an X publish that the strikes had been authorized.
ABC Information has confirmed that survivors from the preliminary strike had been killed consequently.
Trump informed reporters Sunday that he didn’t know concerning the particulars concerning the Washington Publish’s report and defended Hegeseth.
“He mentioned he didn’t say that, and I imagine him,” Trump mentioned when requested concerning the report and Hegseth’s alleged order.
Trump added that he would not have needed a second strike.
“I would not have needed that. Not a second strike. The primary strike was very deadly. It was superb, and if there have been two folks round, however Pete mentioned that did not occur. I’ve nice confidence,” he mentioned.
On Monday, White Home press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley gave the order for the second strike, however didn’t give any extra particulars.
The following day, Hegseth doubled down on the administration’s efforts to assault alleged drug boats.
“We have solely simply begun placing narco-boats and placing narcoterrorists on the backside of the ocean as a result of they have been poisoning the American folks,” he mentioned at a Cupboard assembly on Tuesday.
Secretary of Warfare Pete Hegseth appears on as President Donald Trump speaks throughout a gathering of his Cupboard within the Cupboard Room of the White Home, December 2, 2025 in Washington.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Pictures
Hegseth additionally clarified his earlier feedback about watching the assault dwell.
“As you possibly can think about, the Division of Warfare, we acquired a variety of issues to do. So I did not stick round for the hour and two hours, no matter, the place all of the delicate website exploitation digitally happens,” he mentioned. “So I moved on to my subsequent assembly. A few hours later, I realized that the commander had made the — which he had the entire authority to do.”
“Admiral Bradley made the proper determination to in the end sink the boat and remove the risk. He sunk the boat, sunk the boat, and eradicated the risk. And it was the appropriate name. Now we have his again,” Hegseth added.
Hegseth mentioned that he didn’t see any survivors whereas he watched the video.
“I didn’t personally see survivors, however I stand — as a result of that factor was on fireplace. It was exploded and fireplace and smoke, you possibly can’t see something. You bought digital, there’s — that is referred to as the ‘fog of struggle.'”
