U.S. President Donald Trump said that the U.S. Navy had attacked a ship that he said was carrying illegal drugs on his orders on Friday(local time). The hit, occurring in the area of responsibility for the U.S. Southern Command, is the most recent action in a series of similar strikes by the United States.
Trump said the ship was linked to a “designated terrorist organization,” but he didn’t say which one. He said that intelligence showed the ship was carrying illegal drugs and was on its way to the US through a “known narcotrafficking passage.” The White House and the president’s Truth Social account both tweeted a video of the strike. In it, a ship is hit and then catches fire.
Trump said that three individuals on board were killed in the strike, which he called “male narcoterrorists.” He also said that no U.S. troops were hurt during the mission.
A History of Crackdowns
The U.S. has used military force before to fight drug trafficking. The Trump administration has lately done similar things to ships that are thought to be bringing drugs from Venezuela.
This past Monday, U.S. troops blew up a boat that was thought to be bringing cocaine from Venezuela, killing three individuals.
Another military assault on a speedboat from Venezuela that was thought to be carrying cocaine killed 11 people weeks before this one.
Trump sent a strong message to drug traffickers on Truth Social: “STOP SELLING FENTANYL, NARCOTICS, AND ILLEGAL DRUGS IN AMERICA, AND COMMITTING VIOLENCE AND TERRORISM AGAINST AMERICANS!!!”