The US military has killed four people in an airstrike on a boat in the Caribbean, extending an offensive that has brought repeated accusations of unlawful conduct. US Southern Command, known as Southcom, carried out the strike on Sunday and alleged that the boat was being used for drug smuggling.
The military announced the attack through Southcom on the messaging service X. On Saturday, however, the military did not provide evidence that the vessel struck in the Caribbean was carrying drugs.
The Trump administration began its offensive against alleged drug smugglers in Latin America in September 2025. Southcom has used missile strikes against boats suspected of drug trafficking. The campaign has killed at least 231 people in 69 attacks on boats since it began, while a later tally puts the figure at at least 235 people killed in 70 attacks.
The US has not presented clear evidence that the vessels it has attacked were involved in drug smuggling. The strikes have drawn harsh criticism from several quarters, with several critics calling them extrajudicial executions. They also face accusations of unlawful conduct.
A UN special rapporteur described the military campaign of missile strikes on boats allegedly transporting drugs as “serial extrajudicial killings.” A UN expert has said the strikes may constitute “crimes against humanity.”
The White House has confirmed that it authorised a second airstrike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat in September. It denied ordering the killing of everyone aboard that vessel. Ordering everyone on a vessel to be killed would be considered a war crime.
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