President Donald Trump said the U.S. military destroyed a fourth suspected drug boat on Friday carrying enough drugs to kill tens of thousands of Americans.
“A boat loaded with enough drugs to kill 25 TO 50 THOUSAND PEOPLE was stopped, early this morning off the Coast of Venezuela, from entering American Territory,” Trump said in a social media post.
The president’s post didn’t provide further details about the strike, the fourth such strike since September.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said he took action on Trump’s orders.
“I directed a lethal, kinetic strike on a narco-trafficking vessel affiliated with Designated Terrorist Organizations in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility,” Hegseth wrote on X. “Four male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed in the strike, and no U.S. forces were harmed in the operation.”
Earlier this morning, on President Trump’s orders, I directed a lethal, kinetic strike on a narco-trafficking vessel affiliated with Designated Terrorist Organizations in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility. Four male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed in the… pic.twitter.com/QpNPljFcGn— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) October 3, 2025
Trump ordered military strikes on Sept. 2, Sept. 15, Sept. 19 and Oct. 3 on drug boats in the Caribbean. Trump said the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua was using the boats to smuggle drugs to the U.S.
Like the other three previous strikes in September, the boat was in international waters at the time.
“The strike was conducted in international waters just off the coast of Venezuela while the vessel was transporting substantial amounts of narcotics – headed to America to poison our people,” Hegseth said. “Our intelligence, without a doubt, confirmed that this vessel was trafficking narcotics, the people onboard were narco-terrorists, and they were operating on a known narco-trafficking transit route.”
Despite criticism and questions about the legality of the military strikes, Hegseth said the attacks will continue.
“These strikes will continue until the attacks on the American people are over!!!!,” the secretary of war said.
U.S. officials have said illicit cocaine shipments contribute to overdose deaths in the U.S. They have accused Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro of enabling drug trafficking. The administration has offered a $50 million bounty for Maduro’s arrest.
