U.S. Strike Kills 3 on Eastern Pacific Vessel, Pushing Boat-Strike Toll to 211
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 19
U.S. Strike Kills 3 on Eastern Pacific Vessel, Pushing Boat-Strike Toll to 211
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 19
Summary
June 18's strike by Joint Task Force Southern Spear hit a vessel in the Eastern Pacific and killed three men SOUTHCOM called narco-terrorists; the command did not say whether anyone else survived.
SOUTHCOM said intelligence tracked the boat on known trafficking routes and assessed it was conducting narcotics operations for designated terrorist organizations; no U.S. personnel were harmed.
Video released by the military showed the vessel speeding across the water before exploding, but the command did not identify the exact location or publicly provide evidence naming those killed or proving drugs were aboard.
At least 211 people have now been killed in U.S. military vessel strikes since September, including one person in a separate Eastern Pacific strike disclosed Tuesday.
The attack extends the Trump administration's months-long campaign against cartel-linked networks, a strategy facing legal and human-rights scrutiny over using lethal force outside traditional battlefields.