US Conducts Third Strike on Drug Vessel in Caribbean
President Donald Trump on Friday said U.S. forces carried out a third lethal strike this month on a vessel allegedly trafficking narcotics in international waters, killing three men.
The operation took place in U.S. Southern Command’s (USSOUTHCOM) area of responsibility, which spans Central and South America and the Caribbean.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking illicit narcotics and was en route to poison Americans,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. He did not name the vessel’s origin, destination, or the terrorist group allegedly involved. Trump said no U.S. personnel were harmed in the operation.
The announcement late Friday came as Venezuela accused the United States of waging an “undeclared war” in the Caribbean and urged the United Nations to investigate the strikes.
The recent strike follows two similar operations in recent weeks that killed a total of 14 people.
On Saturday, Trump issued a warning to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s administration, demanding it immediately accept the return of criminals and mentally ill individuals he claimed were released from Venezuelan prisons and asylums and sent to the United States.
“We want Venezuela to immediately accept all prisoners and people from mental institutions, including those from the worst asylums in the world that the Venezuelan ‘leadership’ has forced into the United States of America,” the president wrote on his Truth Social account. “Thousands of people have been badly hurt and even killed by these ‘monsters.’ Get them the hell out of our country, right now, or the price you pay will be incalculable!”
