U.S. strike on alleged drug boat kills 2, leaves 6 survivors

The U.S. military has conducted another strike against a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Sunday, immediately killing two people and leaving six survivors, the Defense Department said, amid an ongoing campaign against alleged traffickers in Latin America. The latest attack — which now number more than 60 — brings the number of people who have been killed in boat strikes by the U.S. military to more than 210 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls "narcoterrorists" in early September. It is unclear if the survivors of this strike, or the one conducted on June 16 that left two survivors, were rescued. However, in both cases, U.S. Southern Command said that it notified the U.S. Coast Guard. The Pentagon did not immediately answer questions about the strike. As with most of the military's statements on strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, SOUTHCOM said it targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs. A black and white video posted on X showed a boat speeding through the water before being struck by a visible projectile and then bursting into flames. 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 United States and fatal overdoses claiming American lives. …