The U.S. military took out another alleged drug-trafficking boat in the Eastern Pacific, killing three “narco-terrorists” as the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, and its strike group arrived in the Caribbean on Sunday.
The vessel was struck in international waters on Saturday and was purportedly operated by a designated terrorist organization, U.S. Southern Command (Southcom) announced on Sunday. It is unclear which terrorist organization the U.S. military is referring to.
The attack was conducted by Joint Task Force Southern Spear, a counternarcotics joint task force within Southcom, which was formed in October.
“The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group’s deployment represents a critical step in reinforcing our resolve to protect the security of the Western Hemisphere and the safety of the American Homeland,” said Adm. Alvin Holsey, Southcom’s commander. Holsey will be retiring later this year.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route and carrying narcotics,” Southcom said in a post on the social platform X, attaching a 14-second video of the strike.
The strike was disclosed the same day as the arrival of the USS Gerald R. Ford, which has more than 4,000 sailors and carries F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets as well as long-range Tomahawk missiles, at the Caribbean Sea.