US strike kills 2 on alleged drug boat in eastern Pacific Ocean as attacks ramp up in region

The U.S.military attacked a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, killing two men, as the Trump administration wages a monthslong campaign against alleged traffickers in Latin America.The latest attack brings the number of people who have been killed in boat strikes by the U.S.

military to at least 207 since the administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” in early September.As with most of the military’s statements on strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, U.S.Southern Command said it targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes.

The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs.A video posted on X showed a boat speeding through the water before bursting into flames.President Donald Trump has said the U.S.

is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States and fatal overdoses claiming American lives.But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists.”Critics have questioned the overall legality of the boat strikes as well as their effectiveness, in part because the fentanyl behind many fatal overdoses is typically trafficked to the U.S.

over land from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India.The strikes have drawn intense scrutiny from some Democratic lawmakers and military legal scholars.The U.S.

military’s first strike in early September drew particular concern from some lawmakers and those who study military law.Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos and more.

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Never miss a story.Two men on the boat initially survived the attack that killed nine others, and they were cli...