The Trump administration claimed the deadly attack targeted members of a “designated terrorist organization.”
Published March 25, 2026
The United States has carried out its 47th attack on a suspected drug-trafficking vessel, this time killing four people.
Wednesday’s announcement brings the total number of people killed in the boat bombing operation, known as Operation Southern Spear, to about 163.
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The U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), which oversees military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, said the attack “inflicted systemic systemic friction on the cartels.”
“On March 25, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a deadly kinetic attack on a vessel operated by a designated terrorist organization,” the command wrote on social media.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was sailing along known drug trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in drug trafficking activities.”
No further details were released about which “terrorist organization” was involved or who was on board.
As usual, the Southern Command attached a brief 15-second aerial video of the attack that showed the narrow boat burst into flames with the statement.
President Donald Trump’s administration has repeatedly insisted that lethal tactics are needed to stop drug trafficking into the United States.
However, legal experts and human rights officials widely criticized the attack as an act of extrajudicial killings.
Boat bombing operations began in the Caribbean on September 2 and expanded into the eastern Pacific Ocean in October.
