WASHINGTON
Three people were killed in a second American strike on a boat that was allegedly transporting narcotics from Venezuela, US President Donald Trump said Monday.
The strike follows an initial Sept. 2 attack on a boat that Trump said killed 11 people, while also drawing criticism. The latest attack happened in international waters as the individuals were "transporting illegal narcotics" to the US, Trump said.
"These extremely violent drug trafficking cartels pose a threat to U.S. National Security, Foreign Policy, and vital U.S. Interests," he said on the US social media company Truth Social’s platform, which he owns.
"Be warned -- if you are transporting drugs that can kill Americans, we are hunting you! The illicit activities by these cartels have wrought devastating consequences on American communities for decades, killing millions of American citizens. No longer," he added.
A video of the strike posted by Trump appears to depict a boat floating listlessly with at least two people on board. The video quickly cuts to another angle in which the strike rapidly takes place, and the boat erupts into a fireball before being consumed in an inferno.
At a later news conference, Trump claimed that since the Sept. 2 strike, vessels carrying narcotics from Venezuela to the US had stopped.
"No drugs are coming across...There are literally no boats. This was a boat and we were surprised to see it," he said.
Asked about proof that the targeted vessel was carrying drugs, Trump said US authorities had "recordings" from its departure indicating it was loaded with narcotics, adding that debris from the attack included "big bags of cocaine and fentanyl all over the place."
The initial strike has prompted questions over its legality, including from members of Trump's own party.
Citing Vice President JD Vance’s shrugging off the possible illegality of the first attack, Sen. Rand Paul said on the US social media company X’s platform on Sept. 6: "JD ‘I don’t give a ****’ Vance says killing people he accuses of a crime is the 'highest and best use of the military'."
"Did he ever wonder what might happen if the accused were immediately executed without trial or representation?? What a despicable and thoughtless sentiment it is to glorify killing someone without a trial," Paul added.
*Ahmet Salih Alacaci contributed to this report from Washington, DC