US strike on alleged drug boat in Pacific kills one

play Live Sign upShow navigation menu.css-15ru6p1{font-size:inherit;font-weight:normal;}Navigation menuNewsShow more news sectionsAfricaAsiaUS & CanadaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle EastExplainedOpinionSportVideoMoreShow more sectionsFeaturesEconomyHuman RightsClimate CrisisInvestigationsInteractivesIn PicturesScience & TechnologyPodcastsTravelplay Live Click here to searchsearchSign upNavigation menucaret-leftDonald TrumpA visual guide to redistrictingWho is Thomas Massie?Texas runoff election resultsWhy Spain is standing up to Trumpcaret-rightNews|ConflictUS strike on alleged drug boat in Pacific kills oneDozens of attacks since September have killed at least 194 people in US operation dubbed ‘Southern Spear’. xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoA video posted on social media by the US Southern Command shows a boat speeding through water before exploding into flames [Screengrab/AP]By Al Jazeera Staff, AFP and APPublished On 27 May 202627 May 2026A US military attack on what it called a drug trafficking boat in the Eastern Pacific has killed a person and left two others stranded at sea, officials said, in continuation of a pattern that has raised alarm among global rights organisations. “One male narco-terrorist was killed during this action and there were two survivors,” US Southern Command wrote in a post to X on Tuesday. It added that it “immediately notified the US Coast Guard to activate the search and rescue system for the survivors”. A video posted on social media by the US Southern Command shows a boat speeding through water before exploding into flames. No survivors could be spotted in the video. US President Donald Trump has said that the country is “in armed conflict” with Latin American drug cartels, which it says are responsible for the scourge of fatal drug overdoses plaguing many US communities. Dozens of similar strikes have killed at least 194 people since last September, according to an Associated Press tally, in a military operation dubbed “Southern Spear”. The US military claimed that the targeted vessel was “operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations” and was “transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific” for drug trafficking. It did not offer more details or any evidence to back the allegation. Legal experts and rights groups say the strikes on the boats could amount to extrajudicial killings because they have apparently targeted civilians who do not pose an immediate threat to the United States. Earlier this month, the Trump administration noted that the president had signed off on a new “counterterrorism strategy” that places eliminating drug cartels in the Western Hemisphere as the administration’s highest priority. Advertisement AboutAboutShow moreAbout UsCode of EthicsTerms and ConditionsEU/EEA Regulatory NoticePrivacy PolicyCookie PolicyCookie PreferencesAccessibility StatementSitemapWork for usConnectConnectShow moreContact UsUser Accounts HelpAdvertise with usStay ConnectedNewslettersChannel FinderTV SchedulePodcastsSubmit a TipPaid Partner ContentOur ChannelsOur ChannelsShow moreAl Jazeera ArabicAl Jazeera EnglishAl Jazeera Investigative UnitAl Jazeera MubasherAl Jazeera DocumentaryAl Jazeera BalkansAJ+Our NetworkOur NetworkShow moreAl Jazeera Centre for StudiesAl Jazeera Media InstituteLearn ArabicAl Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human RightsAl Jazeera ForumAl Jazeera Hotel PartnersFollow Al Jazeera English: