4 killed in U.S. strike on alleged drug-smuggling boat in Caribbean, Pentagon says

The U.S. military attacked a boat suspected of being used to smuggle drugs in the Caribbean Sea on Saturday, killing four people, as the Trump administration continues its monthslong campaign against alleged traffickers in Latin America.

The latest attack brings the number of people who have been killed in boat strikes by the U.S. military to at least 231 in 69 strikes since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” about one year ago.

As with most of the military’s statements on strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, U.S. Southern Command said it targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes.

The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs. A video posted on X showed an image of what appeared to be a moving boat followed by a flash.

The Trump administration is pursuing deals with allied nations to extend its offensive to land across multiple Latin American countries. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during a visit to Panama last month that Colombia, Guatemala and Honduras had agreed to allow the U.S. to carry out joint military operations against criminal groups on their soil. Guatemala denied reaching such a deal. 

Ecuador launched similar missions with the U.S. in March. Last month, the U.S. military worked with Ecuador to board and sink a vessel that was allegedly being used as a refueling station for drug-trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific, according to U.S. Southern Command.  

President Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. and fatal overdoses claiming American lives. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing smugglers.

In the very first attack, conducted on Sept. 2, 2025, the same boat was struck twice, or what has been described as a “double tap” or follow-on strike.   

Sources previously told CBS News that the follow-on strike killed two people who had survived the first strike and were waving overhead. A total of 11 people were killed by both, according to the U.S. military. Some lawmakers and legal experts have questioned the legality of the strikes and have said the so-called “double-tap” may have constituted a war crime.