U.S. boat strike reportedly used disguised plane

Munitions in fuselage add to questions over whether the operation flouted military rules.

- By LISA MASCARO AND KONSTANTIN TOROPIN

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has refused to release unedited video of a U.S. follow-up boat strike.

(GENARO MOLINA Los Angeles Times)

The plane used by the U.S. military to strike a boat accused of smuggling drugs off the coast of Venezuela in the fall was painted to look like a civilian aircraft, a move that appears to be at odds with the Pentagon’s manual on the laws of war.

The plane, part of a secret U.S. fleet used in surveillance operations, also was carrying munitions in the fuselage, rather than beneath the aircraft, raising questions about the extent to which the operation was disguised in ways that run contrary to military protocol.

Details of the plane’s appearance, first reported Monday by the New York Times, were confirmed by two people familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.

Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson said in a statement that “the U.S. military utilizes a wide array of standard and nonstandard aircraft depending on mission requirements.”

The new details come after the Trump administration’s pressure campaign on Venezuela — which began with it massing military resources in Latin America and attacking a series of alleged drug-smuggling boats, killing at least 115 people — culminated this month in a stunning raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. He and his wife were spirited to the United States to face federal drug trafficking charges.

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday blocked a war powers resolution that would prohibit further military action in Venezuela without authorization from lawmakers.

Trump pressures GOP senators