The U.S. military has carried out another strike on a suspected drug boat in the Eastern Pacific, killing four people amid mounting scrutiny over Washington’s increasingly aggressive anti-narcotics operations at sea.
00:00The US military has carried out a strike on Thursday on a suspected drug boat in the eastern Pacific, killing four people on board.
00:08The latest strike comes amid bipartisan criticism of a September operation in which a follow-up strike killed survivors from an alleged drug vessel.
00:19It marks the 22nd strike the US has launched against boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, bringing the death toll to at least 87 since the campaign began in September.
00:30The first publicly announced strike in nearly three weeks comes as the Pentagon and White House struggle to explain the legal basis for targeting suspected drug smugglers.
00:39September 2nd strike, where two survivors clinging to wreckage were killed in a follow-on attack, has drawn a bipartisan scrutiny as a possible war crime, with lawmakers pushing for greater oversight.
00:49US President Donald Trump has signaled further escalation, saying the military may soon begin striking targets inside Venezuela, as part of the offensive against alleged drug traffickers.
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