The U.S. military conducted another attack on an alleged drug smuggling ship in international waters of the eastern Pacific, killing three people, U.S. Southern Command confirmed Sunday as criticism of the strikes continues to mount.
Some 80 people have been killed in the 21 known attacks the U.S. military has conducted targeting alleged drug cartel boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean since Sept. 2. It also comes amid a U.S. military buildup in the region.
The attack was conducted Saturday at the direction of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, U.S. Southern Command said in a statement, which said the boat was being operated by a designated terrorist organization.
No proof of ties to a terrorist organization was provided, but Southern Command said “intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route and carrying narcotics.”
The statement did not state which designated terrorist organization was behind the boat. A black-and-white video was included, showing a motor boat moving at what appears to be a high rate of speed across a body of water before exploding in a ball of fire.
On Nov. 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling,… pic.twitter.com/iM1PhIsroj— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) November 16, 2025
Trump, via executive order, has listed eight drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and specially designated global terrorists.
Since the first strike was conducted, lawmakers, critics, human rights advocates and leaders of foreign countries have raised concerns over the attacks.
While Democrats have questioned the legality of the strikes being conducted without congressional approval, United Nations experts have described it as “extrajudicial executions” and Colombian President Gustavo Petro accused Trump of murder, saying one of the attacks killed a fisherman.
Last week, Colombia suspended intelligence sharing with the United States over the attacks. The strikes have also reportedly prompted Britain to stop sharing intelligence with the United States about suspected drug trafficking boats.
The Trump administration has defended the strikes as necessary to protect Americans from the drugs the boats are allegedly shipping to the United States. It has said the United States is in “armed conflict” with the drug cartels.
President Donald Trump has said he doesn’t think they will seek congressional approval and that “we are just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country.”
On Sunday, the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group entered the Caribbean amid the growing tensions in the region.
