US Military Destroys Two Drug-Smuggling Boats, Killing 5 Narco-Terrorists, Southcom Says

The US military destroyed two suspected drug-trafficking boats on Wednesday, killing five individuals described as “narco-terrorists,” as the Trump administration continues its expanded counternarcotics campaign across the Western Hemisphere.

According to US Southern Command (Southcom), the two vessels were operated by a designated terrorist organization and were intercepted while transiting known drug-smuggling routes. Three people were killed aboard the first boat, while two others were killed on the second.

“Intelligence confirmed the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes and engaged in narco-trafficking,” Southcom said in a statement.

Southcom did not disclose whether the strikes occurred in the Caribbean or the eastern Pacific, the two regions where all US lethal operations against alleged drug boats have taken place since the campaign began in early September. The military also did not identify the terrorist group involved or specify which narcotics were being transported.

Responding to inquiries from The Hill, Southcom said, “due to operational security reasons, we will not comment on the location” of the mission.

Since September 2, US forces have carried out at least 35 strikes against suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Those operations have killed a minimum of 115 people, according to US officials, who say the campaign is aimed at disrupting narcotics flows and defending the United States from transnational criminal and terrorist networks.

On Tuesday, US forces also targeted a convoy of suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Southcom area of responsibility. Southcom said three narco-terrorists were killed aboard the first vessel, while individuals on the second and third boats jumped into the water before follow-up strikes sank their vessels.

Following that operation, Southcom said it notified the US Coast Guard to activate its search-and-rescue system. The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Hill. Reports indicated that eight individuals survived after abandoning the boats.

As with other recent operations, the military declined to disclose where Tuesday’s strike occurred, again citing operational security concerns.

The stepped-up maritime strikes come as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and amid reports that the CIA recently carried out a drone strike on a dock facility along Venezuela’s coast believed to have been used to store narcotics.