US Defence Secretary Says Took Out Six Smugglers In ‘Lethal Kinetic Strike’, Shares Video

Last Updated:November 10, 2025, 21:47 IST

The US military struck two drug boats in the Eastern Pacific, killing 6 linked to Designated Terrorist Organizations, as part of a campaign against narco-trafficking.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth (AP)

The US military carried out another attack on two suspected drug boats on Sunday, killing 6 people in the Eastern Pacific, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on Monday.

In a post on X, Hegseth said: “Yesterday, at the direction of President Trump, two lethal kinetic strikes were conducted on two vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations. These vessels were known by our intelligence to be associated with illicit narcotics smuggling, were carrying narcotics, and were transiting along a known narco-trafficking transit route in the Eastern Pacific."

He further said that both strikes were conducted in international waters and 3 male narco-terrorists were aboard each vessel.

“All 6 were killed. No US forces were harmed. Under President Trump, we are protecting the homeland and killing these cartel terrorists who wish to harm our country and its people," he added.

He also shared a footage of the attack.

According to CNN, the US military has killed 76 people in 19 strikes that have destroyed 20 boats as part of a campaign that Washington says is aimed at curtailing the flow of drugs into the United States.

However, there had been three survivors, of whom two ere briefly detained by the US Navy before returned to their home countries.

In previous briefings to Congress, the administration officials have said they do not necessarily know the identities of each person on the vessel before they attack it. Strikes are instead conducted based on intelligence that the vessels are linked to a specific cartel or criminal organization, CNN reported.

President Donald Trump has justified the airstrikes and said these were a “necessary escalation" to halt the flow of drugs into the US.

Trump claims that the US is engaged in an “armed conflict" with drug cartels. The Republican is relying on the same legal authority his predecessor and fellow Republican George W. Bush relied on when it declared a war on terrorism after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

News world US Defence Secretary Says Took Out Six Smugglers In ‘Lethal Kinetic Strike’, Shares Video

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