The Japan Times - Trump says 11 dead in US strike on drug-carrying boat from Venezuela

Trump posted a video online of an open-topped speedboat carrying a number of people traveling on a body of water before it exploded in a ball of flames.

The move is a potentially significant escalation in the standoff between Caracas and Washington, after the United States deployed warships to the southern Caribbean in what it bills as a war on drug trafficking.

Trump initially announced at the White House that US forces had "shot out a boat... a drug carrying boat, lots of drugs in that boat" without giving details.

The Republican later posted a statement about the strike on his Truth Social network, along with the black and white video of the exploding boat.

"Earlier this morning, on my Orders, U.S. Military Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists," Trump said.

"The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the United States. The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action."

No US forces were harmed, Trump added.

He went on to allege that Tren de Aragua -- a Venezuelan group he has frequently referred to as part of his crackdown on undocumented migration -- was "operating under the control of Nicolas Maduro."

The United States designated the gang a terrorist organization earlier this year.

"Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!" Trump added in his post.

- 'Full might' -

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a vociferous critic of Maduro, vowed separately to keep using the "full might" of the United States to "eradicate" drug cartels.

Trump has "been very clear that he's going to use the full power of America, the full might of the United States, to take on and eradicate these drug cartels, no matter where they're operating from," Rubio told reporters as he left Miami for a visit to Mexico.

Rubio earlier said on X that the vessel had "departed from Venezuela."

Venezuela's Maduro has cast the recent US deployment as a threat to the country.

The announcement of Tuesday's strike followed days of mounting tension between Washington and Caracas, with Maduro declaring a state of "maximum readiness" to defend against what he says are US military threats.

Maduro has been in Trump's crosshairs since the Republican's first term from 2017 to 2021.

But the US president's policy of maximum pressure, including an oil embargo, has failed to dislodge the Venezuelan leader from power.

Washington has doubled to $50 million a bounty for the capture of Maduro, whose re-election in 2024 and 2018 were not recognized by the United States or much of the international community amid allegations of fraud and voter oppression.

Analysts have told AFP that the deployment of the US warships was likely aimed at ramping up pressure on Maduro, who has repeatedly accused Trump of attempting to bring about regime change.

Last week, Caracas petitioned the United Nations to intervene in the dispute by demanding "the immediate cessation of the US military deployment in the Caribbean."

And on Monday, Maduro said Venezuela was prepared for "a period of armed struggle in defense of the national territory" in case of an attack.

K.Hashimoto--JT