From ‘fake news’ to ‘fog of war': Trump admin faces backlash over Hegseth's second strike on drug-boats to kill survivors

Amid intense backlash over the strikes on alleged drug-boats in the Carribean and killing of survivors, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said that he had watched the first strike in September in real time but did not see survivors in the water or the second lethal strike. Calling the follow-up strike a "fog of war," Hegseth, speaking at a Cabinet meeting alongside President Donald Trump, backed his admiral who ordered the strike. "Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat...We have his back," Hegseth said. However, Hegseth had earlier brushed aside the reports about the second strike as “fake news.”

This comes after the White House on Dec 1 confirmed that a US admiral Frank Bradley, who was authorised to conduct kinetic strikes, by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth ordered the killing of survivors. The White House said that Hegeseth knew nothing about the strike and also shielded the admiral, saying he “worked well within his authority and the law.” However, calls are now being made for Hegseth to testify under oath about the second strike. The report about the second strike have drawn bipartisan scrutiny from Congress and concerns about the legality of the administration's moves.

Earlier, responding to reports claiming that Hegseth ordered the killing of survivors on the alleged drug boat, US President Donald Trump expressed his “great confidence” that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth did not give a spoken order to kill all crew members. Trump said that Hegseth told him “he did not say that, and I believe him, 100 percent.” He also added that he would look into the issue. “I wouldn’t have wanted that. Not a second strike. The first strike was very lethal. It was fine,” the president told reporters.

What reports claimed?

The Washington Post and CNN reported that the US troops were given a directive from Hegseth to kill everyone on-board the alleged drug vessels. The Post reported that on September 2, the US military conducted a follow-up strike after seeing two survivors of an initial attack. The report added that following the operation, protocols were changed to rescue any survivors. CNN claimed that it was not clear whether Hegseth was aware of the survivors before the second strike was carried out. He added that the intent of the strikes was to stop lethal drugs, destroy narco boats, and kill the narco terrorists “who are poisoning the American people.” He added that the US operations in the Caribbean are lawful as per both US and international laws.