WASHINGTON: The US military said it killed two people in a strike on an alleged drug-trafficking vessel on Friday (Apr 24), as the death toll of Washington’s campaign against “narco-terrorists” in Latin America climbed to at least 182.
The military “conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations”, the US Southern Command, which is responsible for Washington’s forces in the region, said in an X post.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” it added, echoing language it has used to describe dozens of deadly operations since the campaign began last September.
US military officials have claimed at least seven such strikes in April, bringing the total toll of people killed in these operations to at least 182, according to an AFP tally.
The Trump administration has provided no definitive evidence that the vessels it targets are involved in drug trafficking, prompting debate about the legality of the operations.
International legal experts and rights groups say the strikes likely amount to extrajudicial killings as they have apparently targeted civilians who do not pose an immediate threat to the United States.