US Caribbean Vessel Strike Kills Three

The U.S. military said three people were killed Wednesday after American forces struck a vessel in the Caribbean Sea, marking the latest attack in Washington’s campaign against suspected drug-trafficking operations.

U.S. Southern Command said the military carried out what it described as a “lethal kinetic strike” against a go-fast vessel traveling along established narcotics trafficking routes in the Caribbean.

The command said “confirmed intelligence” indicated the vessel was actively involved in drug trafficking, although it did not publicly provide additional evidence supporting the allegation. Three people aboard the vessel, described by the U.S. military as “narco-terrorists,” were killed in the operation.

The strike is part of a broader U.S. military campaign targeting vessels that President Donald Trump’s administration says are being used to transport illegal narcotics. Washington has conducted such operations in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific since September 2025.

More than 220 people have been killed in U.S. strikes against suspected drug-trafficking vessels during that period, according to the figures cited in reports about the campaign.

The operations have drawn growing scrutiny from legal experts, international organizations and human rights advocates, who have questioned whether the U.S. military has sufficient legal grounds to use lethal force against suspected traffickers at sea.

Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and independent United Nations experts have characterized the attacks as unlawful extrajudicial killings. Their criticism centers partly on whether those targeted posed an imminent threat that would justify lethal military action rather than arrest or interdiction.

The American Civil Liberties Union has also challenged the Trump administration’s justification for the campaign. The civil rights organization has described Washington’s allegations against people targeted in the strikes as “unsubstantiated, fear-mongering claims.”

Despite the criticism, the Trump administration maintains that the vessels targeted by U.S. forces are connected to narcotics trafficking, framing the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific operations as part of its campaign against drug networks.