The U.S. military killed four people Thursday in a strike on a vessel suspected of transporting illegal narcotics in the Eastern Pacific, resuming maritime interdiction operations after a three-week pause.
“On Dec. 4, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel in international waters operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization,” U.S. Southern Command said in a social media post.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was carrying illicit narcotics and transiting along a known narco-trafficking route in the Eastern Pacific,” the command added. “Four male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed.”
Southern Command released unclassified video of the operation showing an explosion engulfing a small boat, followed by flames and dark smoke rising from the wreckage.
On Dec. 4, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel in international waters operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was carrying illicit narcotics and… pic.twitter.com/pqksvxM3HP
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) December 4, 2025
The strike is at least the 22nd such operation since September and the first since Nov. 15, according to media reports tracking the campaign. At least 87 people have been killed across strikes conducted in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean waters.
U.S. Southern Command, headquartered in Florida, oversees American military operations throughout the Caribbean Sea and waters off Central and South America.
It would seem inappropriate to conclude that the boat was a drug boat, since there is no way to make that determination.
It would be interesting to hear & understand the financial impact this is having on the cartels & also in areas of some cities who have a “drug based sub-economies” – in other words, how these actions are affecting supply and demand and gang related finances.
I also wonder how many of these shipments get through – seems that some must or they’d stop the runs. Just wondering over coffee this morning!
Prices on the street for both Cocaine and Fetanol have gone up about 32%.
Article says “intelligence reports” which indicates to me that there was an investigation n this boat was determined to be a drug boat.