Washington — President Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. struck another small boat that he accused of carrying drugs in the waters off the coast of Venezuela.
The president said in a post on Truth Social that six people aboard the vessel were killed in the strike and no U.S. forces were harmed. It’s the fifth deadly strike in the Caribbean, where the Trump administration has asserted it is treating alleged drug traffickers as unlawful combatants who must be met with military force. At least 27 people have been killed in the five strikes, according to figures released by the administration.
Frustration with the use of force has been growing on Capitol Hill among members of both major political parties. Some Republicans are seeking more information from the White House on the legal justification and details of the strikes. Democrats contend the strikes violate U.S. and international law.
Mr. Trump said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the strike Tuesday morning and released a video of the strike, as he has in the past.
Mr. Trump said that the strike was conducted in international waters and that “Intelligence” confirmed that the vessel was trafficking narcotics, was associated with “narcoterrorist networks” and was on a known drug trafficking route.
The Senate last week voted on a war powers resolution that would have barred the Trump administration from conducting the strikes unless Congress specifically authorized them, but it failed to pass.
