Attacks on three more suspected drug ships kill 11, US military says
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military said Tuesday it carried out strikes on three ships accused of smuggling drugs into Latin American waters, killing 11 people in one of the deadliest days of the Trump administration’s months-long campaign against suspected traffickers.
The series of attacks carried out on Monday brought the death toll to at least 145 people since the government began attacking what it calls “narcoterrorists” in small boats since early September.
Like most of the military’s statements about the 42 known attacks, the US Southern Command said it targeted suspected drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. Two boats carrying four people each were hit in the eastern Pacific Ocean, while a third boat carrying three people was hit in the Caribbean Sea.
The military did not provide evidence that the ships were carrying drugs, but released X-rated videos showing destroyed ships.
Late on February 16, under the direction of #SOUTHCOM Commander General Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted three lethal kinetic strikes against three vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations. Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were traveling along known routes… pic.twitter.com/mib9XtptSB
– US Southern Command (@Southcom) February 17, 2026
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Late on February 16, under the direction of #SOUTHCOM Commander General Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted three lethal kinetic strikes against three vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations. Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were traveling along known routes… pic.twitter.com/mib9XtptSB
– US Southern Command (@Southcom) February 17, 2026
Videos released by Southern Command show the ships moving or rocking in the water before explosions engulf them in flames. People can be seen sitting in two of the small open containers before they are destroyed.
President Donald Trump has said the United States is in “armed conflict” with Latin American cartels and justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stop the flow of drugs.
Nathan Howard via Getty Images
Critics have questioned the overall legality of the attacks, as well as their effectiveness, in part because the fentanyl behind many fatal overdoses is typically trafficked into the United States overland from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India.
The boat attacks also drew intense criticism following the revelation that the military killed survivors of the first boat attack in a subsequent attack. The Trump administration and many Republican lawmakers said it was legal and necessary, while Democratic lawmakers and legal experts said the killings were assassinations, if not a war crime.
The attacks followed the Trump administration beginning one of the largest buildups of U.S. military power in Latin America in generations as part of a pressure campaign that culminated in the capture of then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. He was brought to the United States to face drug trafficking charges after a Jan. 3 raid by U.S. forces.
The world’s largest aircraft carrier was ordered to the Caribbean late last year and last week was told to head to the Middle East as tensions between the United States and Iran rise.
The USS Gerald R. Ford and three accompanying destroyers were in the mid-Atlantic on Tuesday and were no longer in the U.S. Southern Command area of operations, according to a Navy official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive ship movements.
The Ford will reinforce a number of US warships in the Middle East, including the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.
Since Maduro’s capture, the US military has reported several attacks on ships, while US forces have also seized oil tankers connected to Venezuela as part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to seize control of the South American country’s oil.
Republicans in Congress have defeated Democratic-led efforts to curb Trump’s ability to carry out further attacks in Venezuela.