Trump’s strike on ‘narco-terrorist’ boat legally murky
The Trump administration’s few details about a U.S. military strike on a boat in the Caribbean Sea has fueled questions as to whether it violated maritime law or human rights conventions.
President Trump, who announced on Tuesday that American forces destroyed a vessel from Venezuela allegedly carrying illegal narcotics, claimed the boat was bound for the U.S. and operated by the Tren de Aragua cartel, which the U.S. has designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
Trump has shared a video appearing to show drone footage of a boat on the water exploding and then on fire, but the Pentagon has not released any specifics about the strike, including how it was carried out and how much and what kind of drugs were on board.
Nor has the administration said what legal authority officials relied upon to justify the move — an unprecedented and significant escalation by the White House against Latin American drug cartels, given that narcotic runners are typically rounded up by the Coast Guard instead of being fired upon by U.S. aircraft.
Experts have accused the administration of violating international law.
“These extrajudicial killings are a clear violation of international law,” Vincent Warren, executive director of the Center for Constitutional Rights, said in a statement to The Hill. “If there are no consequences, we should be extremely concerned about what comes next — will this administration begin executing alleged gang members or drug dealers at home without any judicial process?”
On Thursday, the administration was set to provide to Congress its rationale for the strike, a legal deadline to send a report to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) detailing its reasons for the attack.
The administration so far has suggested the president’s authority to defend the U.S. is sufficient in justifying carrying out the strike, the same rationale used for the Pentagon’s months-long bombing campaign of Houthi targets in Yemen earlier this spring.
Ahead of the report, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday alluded to this rationale.
“President Trump has shown whether it’s the southwest border, whether it’s the Houthis in freedom of navigation, whether it’s Midnight Hammer in Iran, that the precise application of American power can have incredible impacts and reshape dynamics around the world and in the region,” Hegseth said on Fox and Friends, referring to the U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites in June.
“This is a deadly, serious mission for us and it won’t stop with just this strike. Anyone else trafficking in the waters who we know is a designated narco-terrorist will face the same fate,” he added.
And Trump on Wednesday again insisted the boat was laden with drugs and that the attack on it would deter cartels from similar actions in the future.
But Human rights groups say the attack has potentially violated a whole host of international standards and Washington’s own regulations for maritime operations against civilian vessels in international waters.
The president’s war powers, as stipulated under the Constitution, are typically limited to events where groups have done violent harm to U.S. citizens and interests. But given that the administration appeared to target drug traffickers in a situation where it’s not clear if the group was armed or if it had plans to physically harm Americans, experts warn the strike sets a dangerous precedent.
Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I’m Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.
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Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) on Wednesday evening warned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky not to attend a Moscow summit floated by Russian President Vladimir Putin. “I’ll give a free piece of advice to President Zelensky: Don’t go to Moscow. They don’t have your best interests at heart,” Smith, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, told NewsNation’s Blake Burman on “The Hill.” “If he …
The Navy has restored Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) to the retired rank of rear admiral after he received a demotion in 2022 for unethical behavior. “After finding good cause to reopen your retired grade determination, and upon review of all applicable reports and references, it is my pleasure to inform you, effective immediately, you are hereby reinstated to the retired grade of Rear Admiral (Lower Half) in the United States …
President Trump’s deployment of Washington National Guard troops to patrol the nation’s capital has been extended through December to ensure that service members receive the full scope of benefits for the mission, according to multiple news outlets. The soldiers were placed in the district to aid in Trump’s federal takeover of local law enforcement, but not all of the nearly 1,000 members will serve until …
Homeland Dems demand investigation into DHS’s potential ‘unlawful destruction’ of records
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Upcoming things we’re watching in and around the defense world:
The Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studieswill have a virtual discussion on “Winning the Next War: Overcoming the U.S. Air Force’s Capacity, Capability, and Readiness Crisis,” at 10 a.m.
Georgetown Universitywill hold an in-person talk on “Grand Strategy,” with Rebecca Lissner, senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, former deputy assistant to former President Biden and former principal deputy national security advisor to former Vice President Harris, at 5 p.m.
What We’re Reading
News we’ve flagged from other outlets:
Russia wants ‘security guarantees’ too. Here’s what they look like. (The New York Times)
Trump administration to end European security programs focused on Russia (The Washington Post)
The jets were late. Lockheed got on-time bonuses anyway (Defense One)
Opinions in The Hill
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