Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced a US military operation that he said would target "narco-terrorists" in the Western Hemisphere.
"Today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR. Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and @SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people," Hegseth said in a post on X/Twitter.
The US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) is the US military's combatant command that encompasses 31 countries through South and Central America and the Caribbean.
The United States on Monday conducted its 20th strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat, a Pentagon official said on Thursday.
"The strike occurred in the Caribbean and four narco-terrorists were killed, no survivors," the official said.
The official said 79 people have been killed and two were wounded and repatriated to their home countries, while there was one attempted rescue at sea by Mexican authorities as a result of the strikes.
Dozens killed in US strikes against drug vessels in the Caribbean
The US strikes against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean and off the Pacific coasts of Latin America have killed dozens of people, whom President Donald Trump's administration calls drug-trafficking terrorists responsible for thousands of deaths in the United States, without providing evidence.
The US government has not publicly explained the legal justification for its decision to attack the boats.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday pushed back against criticism from some US allies over the legality of the strikes, saying Europeans don't get to dictate how Washington defends its national security.