The US military attacked a vessel in the Caribbean Sea on Tuesday, killing 11 Venezuelan drug traffickers who, according to President Donald Trump, were attempting to transport narcotics into the United States.
Trump announced the strike during a speech at the White House, declaring: “And there’s more where that came from. We have a lot of drugs flowing into our country.”
Later, he expanded on the operation through his social media platform, Truth Social, claiming the raid took place Tuesday morning in international waters. “The attack occurred while the traffickers were at sea, carrying illegal drugs bound for the United States,” he wrote, sharing video footage of the incident.
In August, the US announced a $50 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro.
The episode follows Washington’s decision in August to deploy troops and naval assets to the Caribbean, close to Venezuelan waters, as part of an intensified campaign against Latin American cartels. Analysts, however, warn that the latest strike risks escalating tensions and raises the specter of a potential armed confrontation with Caracas, the Guardian reported.
Still, experts such as James Story, who served as Washington’s top diplomat for Venezuela from 2018 to 2023, remain skeptical about direct military conflict between the two countries.
Among those killed were members of the Cartel de los Soles (“Cartel of the Suns”), a Venezuelan network that US officials under Trump have accused President Nicolás Maduro of leading.
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