U.S. Expands “Narco-Terror” War At Sea
The U.S. military carried out its sixth known attack on boats in the Caribbean Sea Thursday as part of the White House campaign against “narcoterrorists” they claim are responsible for smuggling drugs into the country.
Previous strikes since September have killed at least two dozen people aboard small vessels the administration claims were carrying drugs from Venezuela. At least two survivors from the most recent strike on a submarine are now in U.S. custody.
The news follows Trump’s confirmation Wednesday that he authorized the CIA to carry out covert, and potentially lethal, operations in Venezuela against its dictator Nicolás Maduro and his government, citing prison releases and drug trafficking as reasons for escalating U.S. action in the region.
“He has offered everything,” President Trump said from the White House Friday, regarding concessions from Maduro to avoid further escalation. “He doesn’t want to f*ck around with the United States.”
WHAT WE KNOW
The Department of Homeland Security says the U.S. Coast Guard has seized more than 100,000 pounds of cocaine in the Eastern Pacific Ocean since August as part of Operation Pacific Viper — a mission to intercept drugs before they reach U.S. shores.
Alongside the vessel strikes, these operations reflect the militarization of U.S. anti-drug policy.
The administration’s use of lethal force in international waters — without congressional authorization or public transparency — has triggered alarm among politicians and human rights groups. Venezuela’s government has accused Washington of murdering civilians on the boats and violating international law.
A bipartisan Senate group is pushing a vote on legislation that would bar the U.S. from engaging in hostilities in Venezuela without explicit congressional approval. Trump brushed aside concerns Friday, saying the attacks were on vessels transporting “massive amounts of drugs, just so you understand this was not an innocent group of people.”
HOLDING ON TO POWER
The U.S. has offered $50 million for information leading to Maduro’s arrest over “violating U.S. narcotics laws.” It comes as the White House debates whether to push for regime change in the South American country. A proposal floated by Venezuelan officials would have Maduro step down in three years and hand power to Vice President Delcy Rodríguez. However, she called the reports “fake.”
Meanwhile, opposition leader María Corina Machado, who recently won the Nobel Peace Prize, has called for greater U.S. support to stop Maduro’s “war” on Venezuela. Her party beat Maduro in last year’s presidential election, though he refused to give up power.
American has its largest military presence in the region since the 1980s, deploying 10,000 troops — mostly in Puerto Rico.
On Wednesday, Trump suggested land strikes could come next.
“We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela, and a lot of the Venezuelan drugs coming in through the sea,” he said. “But we’re gonna stop them by land also.”
The CIA has a long — and messy — history in the region. During the Cold War, the U.S. attempted and engaged in coups, assassinations, and proxy wars in Cuba, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Chile, and Nicaragua, among other countries. The interventions sometimes led to civil wars with hundreds of thousands of people killed, as well as decades of instability. Learn more from the Mo News Podcast ⬇️
