3 die in new US strike on alleged drug boat

Washington, United States — US forces on Thursday struck another alleged drug trafficking boat in the Caribbean, killing three people, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said, bringing the death toll from Washington’s controversial anti-narcotics campaign to at least 70.

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The United States began carrying out such strikes -- which experts say amount to extrajudicial killings even if they target known traffickers -- in early September, taking aim at vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific.

The US strikes have destroyed at least 18 vessels so far -- 17 boats and a semi-submersible -- but Washington has yet to make public any concrete evidence that its targets were smuggling narcotics or posed a threat to the United States.

Hegseth released aerial footage on X of the latest strike, which he said took place in international waters like the previous strikes and targeted “a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization.”

The video showed a boat traveling through the water before exploding into flames.