U.S. strike on alleged drug boat kills 2 in eastern Pacific, military says

The U.S. military launched a strike Friday on a boat accused of ferrying drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing two people, according to U.S. Southern Command.

No U.S. military forces were harmed in the operation, it said in a statement on X late Friday.

U.S. Southern Command shared a video showing a boat floating in the water before an explosion left it in flames. It said it targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. 

The Trump administration’s campaign of blowing up alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters has killed at least 183 people in total since September. Other strikes have taken place in the Caribbean Sea. The military has not provided evidence that any of the vessels were carrying drugs.

The attacks began as the U.S. built up its largest military presence in the region in generations and came months ahead of the raid in January that captured then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. He was brought to New York to face drug trafficking charges and has pleaded not guilty.

President Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S.

Critics have questioned the overall legality of the boat strikes.