The United States Armed Forces announced this Tuesday that they have destroyed three more boats linked to drug trafficking in the Pacific and the Caribbean, in an operation that has left a total of eleven dead. According to a statement from the Southern Command published today, 'in the late hours of February 16, under the direction of the Commander of the Southern Command, General Francis L. Donovan, the Southern Lance joint force conducted three lethal kinetic attacks against three vessels operated by designated terrorist organizations.' The text confirms that the vessels 'were transiting known narcotics trafficking routes and participating in narcotics trafficking operations.' Eleven male narcoterrorists died during these actions: four on the first vessel in the eastern Pacific, four on the second vessel in the eastern Pacific, and three on the third vessel in the Caribbean. These three attacks come after another U.S. military strike that destroyed another boat and caused the death of its three crew members last Friday. Since September, these summary attacks on alleged drug traffickers have already exceeded forty and have left around 150 dead. In response to criticism from those who believe Washington is not granting these individuals due process, the Donald Trump administration has argued that its actions are justified because the administration has declared war on several cartels and organizations linked to drug trafficking in Latin America. The Southern Lance operation, which the U.S. has been implementing since last September in the area of responsibility of the Southern Command (Central America, South America, and the Caribbean) and was activated with the primary objective of increasing the tension around Nicolás Maduro, who was captured in an operation in Caracas by U.S. forces on January 3.
