U.S. Military Intensifies Caribbean Maritime Campaign with 15th Anti-Narco-Terror Strike

The U.S. military, under President Donald Trump's directive, has intensified its maritime offensive against narco-terrorism in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, conducting its 15th strike since September 2025. The latest operation resulted in the deaths of three suspected smugglers aboard a vessel confirmed by intelligence to be involved in narcotics trafficking along established drug routes. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth emphasized that the campaign treats these narco-terror groups as transnational terrorist organizations, invoking post-9/11 authorities to justify lethal force in what the administration describes as an ongoing armed conflict. The military campaign has killed at least 64 individuals linked to these operations, highlighting a robust commitment to disrupting drug flows into the United States. However, this aggressive approach has sparked concern among lawmakers, particularly Senate Democrats, who have demanded greater transparency regarding the legal bases and target selection criteria for these strikes. The White House has resisted these calls, maintaining that the campaign is essential to national security and likening the threat to that posed by Al Qaeda.