President Trump has announced in a somewhat vague Truth Social post that US forces have conducted yet another "lethal kinetic strike" on a vessel involved in drug trafficking in the southern Caribbean, related to Venezuela enforcement currently being conducted by the American military.
The attack resulted in the deaths of three men he described as "narcoterrorists" - after he authorized the operation upon US intelligence confirming the vessel was smuggling drugs, according to the post.
It reportedly happened in international waters within the jurisdiction of US Southern Command, which oversees operations in much of South America and the Caribbean, and marks the third such operation targeting suspected drug-smuggling boats in recent weeks.
Prior strikes had already killed 14 individuals, allegedly linked to vessels originating from Venezuela, though serious questions remain - including what appears to be extrajudicial killings. This possibility or likelihood has been raised by many observers as there have not appeared to be efforts to warn or halt the moving vessels before it was bombs away (reportedly from drones). One example of such pushback comes from Human Rights Watch:
Sarah Yager, Washington director at Human Rights Watch, said "US officials cannot summarily kill people they accuse of smuggling drugs."
"The problem of narcotics entering the United States is not an armed conflict, and US officials cannot circumvent their human rights obligations by pretending otherwise," Yager said.
"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking illicit narcotics, and was transiting along a known narcotrafficking passage en route to poison Americans," Trump said in the late Friday evening post. It was accompanied by minute-long aerial footage showing side-by-side videos of a vessel getting struck by a missile.
"No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike. STOP SELLING FENTANYL, NARCOTICS, AND ILLEGAL DRUGS IN AMERICA, AND COMMITTING VIOLENCE AND TERRORISM AGAINST AMERICANS!!!" - the post added.
This comes as Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said his country will defend itself against US "aggression". His defense minister also called it "an undeclared war".
"It is an undeclared war, and you can already see how people, whether or not they are drug traffickers, have been executed in the Caribbean Sea," Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said Friday while overseeing a military exercise.
He then pointed out the victims have been "executed without the right to a defense" or without warning or attempt to intercept. The Maduro government has further accused the Trump White House of seeking to implement "violent regime change in Venezuela and in all of Latin America."
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Over the weekend, President Trump has been on a Truth Social rage fest on a variety of topics, including an interesting message to on Pam Bondi...
And a Washington D.C. crime and protection status update...
Trump has been pushing for American forces to reoccupy Afghanistan's sprawling Bagram air base, and he issued another threat of 'bad things' if the Taliban doesn't comply...
...among several other Truth Social posts this weekend including the simple words JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!