Trump announces plans to expand strikes on drug boats to include land targets

President Donald Trump indicated that the United States plans to extend its military actions from the sea to land in targeting suspected drug-carrying vessels linked to Venezuela. "Were conducting strikes at sea, and now well be extending these operations to land, which is much simpler," Trump said during remarks on Tuesday.

The comments arise as the Pentagon faces intense scrutiny over a deadly strike on a suspected drug vessel in September. During the same days Cabinet meeting, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that the U.S. has "only just begun targeting narco boats," amid growing questions about his involvement in approving the September Caribbean Sea strike.

After the initial attack on the ship, two survivors were reportedly spotted. According to The Washington Post, a Joint Special Operations commander supervising the mission then ordered a second strike to follow Hegseths directive to "eliminate all personnel," though a Pentagon spokesperson called the report completely false. Hegseth defended the action on social media without clarifying whether he explicitly instructed officials to "kill everyone" on board.

Hegseth added that he did not remain for the missions entirety after the first strike and stated that the overseeing admiral acted appropriately, holding full authority for the decision. The White House similarly backed Navy Vice Admiral Frank Mitch Bradley, stating that he operated "within his authority and the law" when authorizing the follow-up strike. Bradley is expected to provide a classified briefing to congressional military oversight committees on Thursday.

The Posts report has prompted allegations from some Democratic lawmakers and former military officials that the described actions may constitute "war crimes." Members of both the Senate and House Armed Services Committees from both parties have promised stringent oversight of the Pentagon following these revelations.

Earlier in September, the Trump administration informed Congress that the U.S. is engaged in an armed conflict with drug cartels, which the president has labeled unlawful combatants. The White House described the actions of these groups as an armed attack against the United States. Over recent months, more than 80 people have died in over a dozen attacks targeting vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific, accused of smuggling drugs into the U.S. Officials have yet to publicly disclose legal justifications or evidence for the strikes, according to lawmakers and civil rights groups.

Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, criticized the legal rationale behind the strikes as "dubious" and an attempt to bypass Congress's constitutional authority over decisions of war. Last month, lawmakers received classified briefings but were reportedly unable to obtain credible explanations for the extrajudicial actions.

Following the Washington Post report, Hegseth shared an AI-generated image depicting the children's book character Franklin the Turtle firing a rocket launcher at boats from a helicopter. Franklins publisher, Kids Can Press, condemned the image, emphasizing that it misuses a beloved character associated with kindness and inclusivity, contradicting their values.

Author: Lucas Grant