By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A series of U.S. strikes against suspected drug vessels in the eastern Pacific killed 14 alleged drug traffickers and left one survivor, U.S. 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 U.S. 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 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, without providing evidence.
ADMINISTRATION SILENT ON DETAILS
But 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 U.S. tensions with Venezuela and Colombia. Trump has also authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela.
The Pentagon has provided little information about any of the strikes, including the quantity of drugs the boats allegedly carried and the identities of those killed.
The strikes have raised alarm among some Democratic lawmakers, who question whether they adhere to the laws of war.
Legal experts have questioned why the U.S. military is carrying out the strikes, instead of the Coast Guard, which is the main U.S. maritime law enforcement agency, and why other efforts to halt the shipments were not made before resorting to deadly strikes.
Reuters has previously reported that two alleged drug traffickers survived a U.S. military strike in the Caribbean earlier this month. They were rescued and brought to a U.S. Navy warship before being repatriated to Colombia and Ecuador.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly alleged that the U.S. 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)
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