The US military said it killed two alleged drug traffickers in a strike on a boat in the eastern Pacific while the Coast Guard was searching for a third person who survived.
"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said in a post on X that included a clip of a multi-engined boat being smashed by an explosion.
Three people were visible in the footage prior to the strike, and SOUTHCOM said it "immediately" notified the US Coast Guard to look for the one who survived.
US President Donald Trump's administration began targeting alleged smuggling boats in early September, insisting it is effectively at war with alleged "narco-terrorists" operating out of Venezuela.
But it has provided no definitive evidence that the vessels are involved in drug trafficking, prompting heated debate about the legality of the operations.
International law 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.
The latest strike was the first carried out since late last year and is also the first since US forces seized leftist Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in a lighting raid on Caracas in early January, bringing him and his wife to the United States to stand trial.
