US strike kills three as largest warship enters Caribbean amid rising Venezuela tensions

US military targets another suspected drug vessel in Pacific, 3 killed

The United States has sharply escalated its military operations in Latin America, carrying out another lethal strike on a suspected narcotics-smuggling vessel as its most advanced aircraft carrier entered the Caribbean in a major show of force.

The Pentagon confirmed that Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a deadly strike in the eastern Pacific on Saturday, targeting a small boat allegedly moving along a well-established narcotics route.

According to US Southern Command, “intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics.” The vessel was in international waters when it was hit, the command said.

Ordered by Secretary Hegseth, the strike targeted a boat travelling on a known narco-trafficking route in the eastern Pacific, killing three men described as “narco-terrorists.” The US said intelligence confirmed the boat was carrying narcotics and operating in international waters.

The nationalities and identities of the three men killed have not been made public. The Pentagon also said that on November 15, Joint Task Force Southern Spear carried out a “lethal kinetic strike” on a vessel operated by a designated terrorist organisation.

This was the 21st known US strike on suspected smuggling boats since early September, with at least 83 people killed across the Caribbean and eastern Pacific during what the Trump administration describes as one of its most aggressive maritime counter-drug campaigns in decades.

The Pentagon has not disclosed whether additional strikes are imminent but has said the mission will continue “as long as necessary” to disrupt drug-trafficking routes.

US Southern Command on Sunday also released video footage on X showing the targeted vessel exploding at sea.

The intensifying operations have drawn scrutiny from lawmakers, human rights groups, and several foreign governments, who question the legal basis for deploying lethal force outside traditional conflict zones. The administration maintains it has full authority for the strikes, even as concerns grow about their impact on regional stability and maritime safety.

Carrier arrival marks major military buildup

Tensions are likely to rise further with the arrival of the USS Gerald R. Ford, the US Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier, in the Caribbean. The ship and its accompanying strike group entered the region on Sunday, marking the largest American military presence there in generations.

Rear Adm. Paul Lanzilotta, who commands the carrier group, said the deployment would “protect our nation’s security and prosperity against narco-terrorism in the Western Hemisphere,” describing it as an expansion of an already significant offshore footprint.

The Ford transited the Anegada Passage near the British Virgin Islands and has now joined nearly a dozen Navy vessels and about 12,000 sailors and Marines assigned to Operation Southern Spear.

The show of force comes as Washington maintains pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a point of contention for Caracas, which sees the buildup as a political tactic rather than a counter-narcotics mission. US officials deny the deployment is aimed at Venezuela.