The United States government confirmed this Saturday the authenticity of the video showing the attack by U.S. forces on a submarine that allegedly carried drugs in the Caribbean Sea, near the coasts of Venezuela.
According to President Donald Trump, the attack prevented “a massive influx of fentanyl and other illegal drugs” from entering American territory.
In his social network Truth Social, the leader stated that it was “a great honor to destroy a huge submarine heading towards the United States on a well-known drug trafficking route.”
The video —released by the White House and recorded from a military drone— shows the exact moment when an aircraft launches missiles at a semi-submersible vessel, which explodes seconds later.
According to Trump, U.S. intelligence confirmed that the ship was primarily carrying fentanyl, one of the synthetic drugs responsible for the current overdose crisis in the country.
“At least 25,000 Americans would have died if that submarine had reached our shores,” he stated.
The operation took place on Thursday night, near the Venezuelan coast, under the coordination of the United States Southern Command.
The attack left two drug traffickers dead and two survivors, both identified as citizens of Ecuador and Colombia. According to Trump, the men "will be repatriated to their countries of origin for detention and prosecution."
"There were no American casualties in the operation. Under my administration, the United States will not tolerate narcoterrorists who traffick drugs by land or by sea," the president added in his official statement.
The operation, which took place on Thursday, represents the first confirmed destruction of a submarine allegedly involved in drug trafficking by U.S. forces in international waters of the Caribbean.
Since September, at least six similar attacks against suspicious vessels have been recorded in the region, although there were no survivors.
The Pentagon has not provided details regarding the type of weaponry used, but military sources consulted by CBS News stated that it was "a precision strike executed from an MQ-9 Reaper drone," launched from a base in Florida.
The incident occurs amid a military escalation between the United States and Venezuela, after Trump authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations on Venezuelan territory under the pretext of "combating drug trafficking and transnational organized crime."
The government of Nicolás Maduro described the action as “a direct aggression” and warned that it could declare a state of emergency in coastal areas.
"We will not allow violations of our sovereignty," stated Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López in a statement broadcast by state television.
Since August, Southern Command has increased its presence in the Caribbean with destroyers, nuclear submarines, and F-35 aircraft, as part of a strategy to curb the flow of drugs from South America.
U.S. officials assert that "a significant portion of maritime traffic" is linked to the Cartel de los Soles, a network that, according to Washington, operates within the Venezuelan armed forces.
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