Overview
- Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said three strikes on four vessels in the eastern Pacific on Monday killed 14 people, with search-and-rescue for one survivor handed to Mexican authorities.
- The U.S. has conducted more than a dozen lethal maritime strikes since September, with at least 57 people reported killed.
- The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group has been directed to U.S. Southern Command to strengthen detection and disruption of suspected trafficking near Venezuela.
- President Trump has publicly endorsed using lethal force against suspected traffickers as the administration leans on cartel terrorist designations to justify military action.
- Mexico’s president condemned the latest strikes, and legal critics question the authorization and public evidence, while analysts say the pressure also targets Nicolás Maduro’s government.