Saturday, October 25, 2025 - The US Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth announced today, October 24, that the U.S. had conducted an overnight strike against a boat allegedly operated by a drug cartel and smuggling narcotics in the Caribbean.
The strike, which Hegseth said killed six people, brings the
total number of known targeted boats to 10 and the number of people killed to
43 since the U.S. began its campaign last month.
The strikes, which have been conducted without judicial
proceedings or a declaration of war by Congress, have raised significant
questions about the limits of presidential power. Just yesterday, Trump
insisted that he can continue to launch these strikes against alleged drug
traffickers without asking Congress for a declaration of war, stating, “I think
we’re just doing to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country.”
The campaign has been sharply criticized by the governments
of Colombia and Venezuela, countries where many of the targeted boats appear to
have originated. The families of those killed have also voiced opposition, with
some denying their relatives were involved in drug smuggling.
Hegseth said the boat most recently targeted was being
operated by Tren de Aragua, a criminal cartel that President Trump designated
as a foreign terrorist organization near the beginning of his second term. This
gang has been targeted in previous U.S. boat strikes.
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