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U.S. Military Eliminates 11 Drug Smuggling Suspects off Venezuela

Burning smuggling boat
Courtesy of the White House

Published Sep 2, 2025 8:48 PM by The Maritime Executive

 

For the first time in years, the U.S. military has destroyed a suspected drug smuggling vessel and neutralized its crew, without conducting a law enforcement boarding. On Tuesday, the White House announced the elimination of 11 suspects who were allegedly transporting narcotics off the coast of Venezuela. 

"The president is going to be on offense against drug cartels and drug trafficking in the United States," Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters. "It destabilizes not just the country, but the entire Caribbean basin. These particular drugs were probably headed to Trinidad or some other country in the Caribbean."

In a statement on his social media platform, President Donald Trump said that he gave the orders to conduct a kinetic strike against "Tren de Aragua narcoterrorists" at a position in U.S. Southern Command. The strike occurred in international waters, resulting in 11 fatalities. 

"Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America," Trump wrote.

The White House did not disclose if there were any survivors recovered for criminal prosecution, or if the drugs were retrieved from the scene of the interdiction. Historically, maritime smuggling intercepts have been handled by the U.S. Coast Guard using its law enforcement authority, with almost all suspects captured alive. 

The strike comes as the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps are surging assets into the southern Caribbean. According to Reuters, seven warships are in the vicinity of Venezuela or are on their way, bringing a combined force of 4,500 sailors and marines with them. 

The Trump administration considers the Venezuelan regime of dictator Nicolas Maduro to be illegitimate, and the White House has asserted links between Maduro and Tren de Aragua, which it has designated as a foreign terrorist organization. In April, the National Intelligence Council advised that Maduro's administration views Tren de Aragua as a threat, not a partner, and that the "Maduro regime probably does not have a policy of cooperating with [Tren de Aragua]."