The United States military said on Wednesday that eight people were killed in a fresh round of strikes targeting what it described as drug-smuggling boats, raising the death toll in Washington’s campaign against alleged narcotics traffickers to at least 115.
US Southern Command, which oversees American military operations in Central and South America, said the strikes were carried out over two days, on Tuesday and Wednesday.
In a statement posted on X, the command said that on Tuesday it targeted “three narco-trafficking vessels traveling as a convoy” in international waters. According to the statement, three people aboard the first vessel were killed in the initial engagement. Those on the remaining two boats reportedly abandoned their vessels by jumping overboard before follow-up strikes sank the boats.
The statement was accompanied by a video showing the vessels moving together at sea before being struck by a series of explosions.
The military did not disclose the precise location of the strikes, though previous operations have taken place in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean. It said the US Coast Guard had been notified to activate search and rescue procedures but provided no further information on the fate of those who entered the water.
Hours later, US Southern Command issued a second statement saying that strikes on two additional vessels on Wednesday killed five more people. Again, no location details were provided.Since September, the US military has conducted more than 30 strikes on vessels it claims are involved in drug trafficking to the United States, without publicly presenting evidence linking the targeted boats to smuggling activities.
International law experts and human rights groups have raised serious concerns, arguing that the strikes may constitute extrajudicial killings, as those targeted appear to be civilians who posed no immediate threat to the United States.
The operations come amid heightened tensions between Washington and Caracas. In recent months, US President Donald Trump has accused Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro of running a drug cartel. Maduro has rejected the allegations, accusing the United States of pursuing regime change in order to gain access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.