A series of US strikes against drug vessels in the eastern Pacific killed 14 drug traffickers and left one survivor, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday, the latest operation in President Donald Trump's counter-drug campaign.
The strikes in the Pacific come against the backdrop of a US military buildup in the Caribbean that includes guided-missile destroyers, F-35 fighter jets, a nuclear submarine, and thousands of troops. The administration has ordered the Gerald Ford carrier strike group to the region, and it is expected to reach the Caribbean in the coming weeks.
In a social media post, Hegseth said Mexican authorities took over the search-and-rescue operation for the lone survivor from the three strikes, which took place on Monday.
"The four vessels were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics," Hegseth said.
Hegseth posted a roughly 30-second video, which appeared to show two vessels close together in the water before exploding. Another part of the video showed a vessel moving in the water before exploding.
Mexican authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The strikes followed at least 10 others in the Caribbean and Pacific since early September, in a campaign that has raised US tensions with Venezuela and Colombia. Trump has also authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela.
Venezuela's illegitimate president Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly alleged that the US is hoping to drive him from power.
Washington in August doubled its reward for information leading to Maduro's arrest to $50 million, accusing him of links to drug trafficking and criminal groups that Maduro denies.
(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart. Additional reporting by Brendan O'Boyle, Editing by Franklin Paul and Rod Nickel)
