The U.S. Southern Command reported that on Wednesday, the Southern Spear Joint Task Force carried out a "lethal kinetic attack" on a vessel operated by one of the Designated Terrorist Organizations in an action conducted under the direction of General Francis L. Donovan.
According to the message released by the entity on X, US intelligence confirmed that the vessel was navigating through known drug trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was involved in drug trafficking operations.
As a result of the attack, four men were killed, whom the Southern Command itself identified as "narcoterrorists," while no injuries were reported among the United States military forces.
The official statement was direct. The U.S. text states: “Apply total systemic pressure on the cartels. On March 25, under the command of General Francis L. Donovan of the Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), the Joint Task Force Southern Spear carried out a lethal kinetic strike against a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations.”
The same message adds that the vessel was being tracked by U.S. intelligence in maritime corridors linked to drug trafficking and that it was actively participating in those operations.
According to that official version, the operation is part of a strategy of maximum pressure against the cartels and drug trafficking networks in the region.
This announcement is part of a broader offensive initiated by Washington against criminal organizations in the hemisphere.
In that context, at the beginning of March, Southern Command confirmed another attack on a vessel linked to drug trafficking, this time in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
The operation took place on March 8 and resulted in six deaths. The action occurred just one day after President Donald Trump announced the regional coalition "Shield of the Americas" against the cartels.
In that prior operation, the Joint Task Force Southern Spear also participated, executing another “lethal kinetic strike” against a vessel operating for organizations designated as terrorists.
In that case, U.S. military intelligence stated that the vessel was navigating known drug trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was involved in drug trafficking activities.
The announcement was accompanied by black and white aerial images showing the vessel at sea before the impact.
Since the beginning of this offensive in 2025, the U.S. military has carried out dozens of strikes against vessels used by drug trafficking networks, resulting in more than a hundred deaths in these operations.
The usual white vessels are ships detected in strategic maritime corridors used by cartels to transport drugs through the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific.
In parallel, this escalation is connected to the creation of the "Shield of the Americas," a coalition of 12 Latin American countries announced at a summit in Miami.
This initiative aims to combat drug trafficking, organized crime, and illegal migration, and represents a new phase of military and intelligence cooperation among Washington's allied governments.
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