US strikes alleged drug trafficking boat in Eastern Pacific, killing 2

The US military said on Monday that it struck an alleged drug trafficking boat in the Eastern Pacific routes, killing two people. US Southern Command said in a post on Sunday that the strike took place on Sunday on a “low-profile vessel operating along established narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific.” The US SOUTHCOM claimed to have confirmed intelligence of their involvement in the narco-trafficking.

"This operation is a clear and decisive reminder that SOUTHCOM is taking the fight directly to the cartels." US SOUTHCOM said in a post on the social media platform X. It also shared a grainy black-and-white video which showed a vessel moving before its explosion. T

The military did not identify the boat, but it appeared to be a long semi-submersible vessel, sometimes referred to as a "narco-sub". These vessels are usually preferred by drug traffickers as they sometimes go unnoticed.

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"When I ordered the establishment of Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere, it was precisely for this purpose: to accelerate, synchronise, and execute lethal actions against these destabilising narco-terrorist networks. We are committed to imposing total systemic friction on narco-terrorists -- disrupting their operations, dismantling their leadership, and eliminating cartel terror across the region." Gen. Donovan said.

This marks the first known strike since June 21. The US Military launched “Operation Southern Spear” in September 2025, but it is unclear why the strikes on the alleged drug vessels were halted. It had struck at least 67 vessels and killed at least 221 people prior to the pause. The US federal government is yet to provide any evidence linking them to narco trafficking.

Legal experts at the United Nations Human Rights Council have repeatedly called these strikes against civilian style vessel amounts to be extrajudicial killings, specifically the double-tap strikes, which target the survivors from the first strike. The Pentagon's watchdog said in May that it planned to look into whether the US military followed an established targeting framework when carrying out the strikes. However, those evaluations were related to following the established protocol of the six-phase Joint Targeting Cycle, not the legality of the strikes.