The United States has conducted its 17th lethal strike against a suspected drug vessel, killing all three on board, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on X overnight.
The strike took place in international waters in the Caribbean on Thursday, Hegseth said.
“As we’ve said before, vessel strikes on narco-terrorists will continue until their the poisoning of the American people stops,” said Hegseth in his social media post. “The vessel was trafficking narcotics in the Caribbean and was struck in international waters. No U.S. forces were harmed in the strike, and three male narco-terrorists — who were aboard the vessel — were killed.”
Separately, six individuals were arrested and more than seven tons of cocaine were seized in the Atlantic Ocean “without fatalities,” Colombia President Gustavo Petro said in a post on X Friday morning.
Petro called it “one of the largest seizure days in my government, with the collaboration of our public security forces and the French authorities.”
The seizures were carried out on land and at sea, according to Petro. The nationalities of those arrested are unknown, Petro said.
President Donald Trump has called Petro an “illegal drug dealer” who “does nothing to stop” drug production.
At least 70 people have now been killed in strikes on vessels since Sept. 2.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks to senior military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico, in Quantico, Virginia, September 30, 2025.
Andrew Harnik/Reuters
On Sunday, the Trump administration gave more than a dozen Senate Republicans a secret target list for its ongoing military campaign in the Caribbean Sea, suggesting it is preparing for sustained operations against drug cartels and that it believed the military strikes could withstand potential legal challenges.
“To all narco-terrorists who threaten our homeland: if you want to stay alive, stop trafficking drugs. If you keep trafficking deadly drugs — we will kill you,” said Hegseth.
