The White House confirmed on Monday (December 1st) that the US military carried out multiple strikes against a ship suspected of transporting drugs from Venezuela in September, asserting that the operation was legal. However, they denied reports claiming that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth issued a “kill order”.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt disclosed during a briefing that the US military conducted attacks on the drug trafficking ship on September 2nd more than once. She categorically dismissed The Washington Post’s report about Secretary Pete Hegseth ordering to “leave no one alive” and personally giving the command for a second strike.
Leavitt stated that although Hegseth authorized “kinetic strikes”, Admiral Frank Bradley, the commander of the US Special Operations Command, was the one who specifically carried out the orders. She emphasized that “Admiral Bradley acted entirely within his authority and legal framework, commanding the engagement to ensure the vessel was destroyed and eliminate the threat to the United States.”
Leavitt mentioned that the strike on the drug trafficking ship was a “defensive action taken to protect the American people,” in accordance with the laws of war. She reiterated that the Trump administration considers organizations designated by the President as targets for deadly strikes.
President Trump mentioned on Sunday (November 30th) aboard Air Force One to reporters that he personally “does not wish” for a second strike, and affirmed that Hegseth had denied issuing orders for further attacks to him. Trump emphasized his support for the military’s authority to conduct deadly strikes against drug trafficking terrorists.
He stated that each drug trafficking vessel bears responsibility for “the deaths of 25,000 Americans.”
The controversy surrounding this incident has caused a stir in Congress, with lawmakers calling for an investigation into the matter.
The White House also responded on Monday to President Trump’s promise to pardon Juan Orlando Hernández, the former President of Honduras, who was convicted of drug trafficking charges. Leavitt stated that Hernández’s conviction was a result of the previous administration’s “overzealous prosecution.”
In response to questions from reporters, Leavitt further clarified that the President’s objective is to defend the US homeland and rectify the “errors” of the previous government’s justice department, which is not contradictory to the US military’s actions against drug trafficking ships in the Caribbean Sea.
At the time of this incident, the US had conducted over twenty strikes against drug trafficking ships in the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Pacific. Meanwhile, the US is expanding its military deployment in the region.
(Reference from Reuters, CNN, and CBS News reports)