According to President Donald Trump, US forces conducted a “lethal kinetic strike” on a vessel, and he reported that there was drug trafficking on a vessel, leaving three killed “male narcoterrorists” on board.
President Trump stated that he ordered the attack on the boat, which fell within the area of responsibility of the US Southern Command, after the US confirmed that the boat was involved in drug trafficking. It was the third attack on a so-called drug boat in recent weeks.
His post on Truth Social on Friday states that the strike occurred in international waters, which comes under the responsibility of the US Southern Command, covering the majority of South America and the Caribbean.
Two past attacks have led to the deaths of 14 individuals on boats that were claimed to have been of Venezuelan origin.
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has already denounced the attacks and stated that his nation would retaliate against the US “aggression.”
The post by President Trump on Friday evening was similar to the announcements of such strikes made before. The post included a video of the boat going through a body of water, and in a few seconds, it explodes and catches fire.
President Trump adds, “On my Orders, the Secretary of War ordered a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization conducting narcotrafficking in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility.”
He penned in a post, “Intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking illicit narcotics, and was transiting along a known narcotrafficking passage enroute to poison Americans.”
President Trump further writes, “No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike. STOP SELLING FENTANYL, NARCOTICS, AND ILLEGAL DRUGS IN AMERICA, AND COMMITTING VIOLENCE AND TERRORISM AGAINST AMERICANS!!!”
The BBC reported in this context that, according to legal experts, the lethal blow on the first ship in international waters had the potential of breaching international human rights and maritime law.
