The US military on Sunday announced a lethal strike on a vessel in the Caribbean carrying alleged narco-traffickers, killing two people. The US Southern Command said it conducted a ‘lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations’ at the direction of the leader of the Southern Command, Gen. Francis L. Donovan of the Marine Corps.
The military claimed, citing intelligence, that the vessel ‘was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations.’ There were six male survivors in addition to the two men killed in the strike.
Concerns Over Strikes
Some lawmakers, including Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., have raised concerns about the strikes, questioning the killing of people without due process and the possibility of killing innocent people. The senator previously cited Coast Guard statistics that show a significant percentage of boats boarded on suspicion of drug trafficking are innocent.
The attacks have also been denounced by human rights groups as ‘extrajudicial killings.’ The Pentagon has refused to release the identities of those killed in the strikes since last fall or provide evidence of drugs on board.
Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
