The United States military launched an attack on a boat suspected of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, resulting in the deaths of two men. This incident is part of an ongoing campaign by the Trump administration against alleged traffickers in Latin America.
Death Toll Rises
The latest strike brings the total number of people killed in such boat attacks by the US military to at least 207 since the administration began targeting individuals it labels as 'narcoterrorists' in early September.
As with most military statements regarding strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, US Southern Command indicated that the operation targeted alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. However, the military did not provide evidence that the vessel was actually carrying drugs. A video posted on X showed a boat speeding through the water before bursting into flames.
Administration's Justification
President Donald Trump has stated that the US is in an 'armed conflict' with cartels in Latin America and has justified these attacks as a necessary escalation to curb the flow of drugs into the United States and reduce fatal overdoses among Americans. However, the administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing 'narcoterrorists'.
Criticism and Legal Questions
Critics have questioned the overall legality of the boat strikes as well as their effectiveness. This is partly because the fentanyl responsible for many fatal overdoses is typically trafficked to the US over land from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India. The strikes have drawn intense scrutiny from some Democratic lawmakers and military legal scholars.
The US military's first strike in early September drew particular concern. In that incident, two men on the boat initially survived the attack that killed nine others, and they were clinging to wreckage when the vessel was struck again, killing them. The White House confirmed the follow-up strike, insisting it was done 'in self-defense' to ensure the boat was destroyed and in accordance with the laws of armed conflict. However, some legal scholars argued that a second strike killing survivors would have been illegal under any circumstance, whether in armed conflict or not.
Pentagon Investigation
The Pentagon's watchdog announced in May that it plans to investigate whether the US military followed an established targeting framework when carrying out the strikes. However, the evaluation is focused specifically on what is known as the six-phase joint targeting cycle and not on the legality of the strikes, according to the inspector general's office.
