Trump says 11 killed in US strike on drug-carrying vessel from Venezuela

[ad_1] Bernd Debusmann Jr BBC Information, White Home

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/031c/live/5c166c90-8875-11f0-9cf6-cbf3e73ce2b9.png.webp" loading="eager" alt="Donald Trump/Truth Social A grainy aerial video still shows a motor boat speeding across choppy waters" class="sc-d1200759-0 dvfjxj"/> Donald Trump/Reality Social Donald Trump posted a video on social media displaying a motor boat dashing throughout uneven waters earlier than it bursts into flames.

President Donald Trump says the US has carried out a strike towards a drug-carrying vessel within the southern Caribbean, killing 11 "narcoterrorists".

He posted on social media that Tuesday's US navy operation had focused members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

Trump stated the vessel was in worldwide waters and was transporting unlawful narcotics sure for the US.

The Trump administration has ratcheted up navy and political stress towards Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in latest weeks, together with by a $50m (£37m) reward for info resulting in his arrest on drug-trafficking prices. Maduro has vowed Venezuela would battle any tried US navy intervention.

Talking to reporters within the Oval Workplace on Tuesday, Trump stated that US forces had "shot out" a "drug-carrying boat" within the neighborhood of Venezuela.

"Numerous medication in that boat," he stated.

Trump added he had been briefed on the incident by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Workers, Common Dan Caine.

Later the president posted on his Reality Social platform: "Earlier this morning, on my Orders, US Army Forces performed a kinetic strike towards positively recognized Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists within the SOUTHCOM space of duty."

He added: "The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in motion. No US Forces have been harmed on this strike. Please let this function discover to anyone even fascinated by bringing medication into the US of America. BEWARE!"

His put up was accompanied by a grainy aerial video displaying a motor boat dashing throughout uneven waters earlier than it bursts into flames.

In a social media put up, Venezuela's communications minister, Freddy Ñáñez, recommended, with out proof, that the video shared by Trump was created with synthetic intelligence.

The Reuters information company wrote that its preliminary checks on the video had not revealed any indicators of manipulation, however that its verification course of was ongoing.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated in a put up on X that "in the present day the US navy performed a deadly strike within the southern Caribbean towards a drug vessel which had departed from Venezuela and was being operated by a chosen narco-terrorist organisation".

It's so far unclear what medication the vessel was believed to have been carrying.

Since returning to the White Home in January, Trump has designated a number of drug-trafficking organisations and felony teams in Mexico and elsewhere in Latin America as terrorist organisations.

He has used allegations of criminality as a justification for deporting Venezuelans. He did, nonetheless, endure a blow late on Tuesday when a US appeals court docket dominated that he couldn't invoke an 18th-Century wartime regulation to hurry up these removals.

In addition to Tren de Aragua, Trump has taken intention on the Cartel of the Suns - a bunch that the US alleges is headed by Maduro and different high-ranking Venezuelan officers, some drawn from the nation's navy or intelligence providers.

The US navy has moved to bolster its forces within the southern Caribbean during the last two months, together with by the deployment of extra naval vessels and hundreds of US Marines and sailors.

The Trump administration has repeatedly signalled a willingness to make use of drive to stem the stream of medicine into the US. "There's extra the place that got here from," Trump stated of the strike on the vessel.

Venezuela's authorities has reacted angrily to the deployments.

On Monday, for instance, Maduro vowed to "declare a republic in arms" if the US attacked, including that the US deployments have been "the best menace that has been seen on our continent within the final 100 years".

In not less than one different respect, Trump has taken a softer stance in the direction of Venezuela - by reportedly permitting US firm Chevron to work throughout the nation in partnership with the nation's state-run PDVSA oil agency.