The U.S. military blew up another alleged drug-trafficking boat in the Eastern Pacific on Friday, killing two “narco-terrorists,” but one person survived the operation.
The vessel, operated by a designated terrorist organization, was transiting along “known narco-trafficking routes” in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in “narco-trafficking operations,” according to the U.S. Southern Command (Southcom).
It is unclear which terrorist group the military was referring to and what types of drugs the boats were carrying.
After the strike, which killed two people and left one survivor, the U.S. military notified the U.S. Coast Guard to activate the search and rescue system for the survivor, Southcom said.
“On Friday, January 23rd, the U.S. Coast Guard was notified by the Department of War’s Southern Command of a person in distress in the Pacific Ocean,” the Coast Guard’s Southwest District public affairs office said in a statement to The Hill. “U.S. Coast Guard District Southwest is coordinating search and rescue operations. Updates will be provided when available.”
The Friday mission marks the first publicly disclosed U.S. military boat strike since Dec. 31, 2025, when U.S. forces killed at least five “narco-terrorists” in two boats operated by a designated terrorist organization.
The latest attack also represents the first drug boat strike by the administration since U.S. Special Forces captured Nicolás Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, on Jan. 3. U.S. officials have deemed the Venezuelan strongman an “illegitimate leader” and head of a drug cartel.
Since Sept. 2, the U.S. military has conducted at least 36 boat strikes and has killed at least 125 “narco-terrorists,” in what the administration argues is an effort to curb the flow of illegal drugs in the region and protect the U.S. The attacks have taken place in both the Eastern Pacific and the Caribbean Sea. Most of the recent strikes occurred in the Eastern Pacific.
By FILIP TIMOTIJA/The Hill
