At a Glance
- Trump claims U.S. struck a Venezuelan dock that loads drug-carrying boats.
- The strike allegedly killed 105 people across 29 attacks since September.
- U.S. has seized two oil tankers and pursued a third in the region.
- Why it matters: It signals a possible shift from sea to land strikes against drug trafficking in South America.
President Donald Trump said that the U.S. hit a dock facility where boats load drugs, following a series of strikes aimed at drug-smuggling operations.
The Claim
During a meeting in Florida with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump described the strike:
President Donald Trump said:
> “There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs, so we hit all the boats and now we hit the area. It’s the implementation area. There’s where they implement. And that is no longer around.”
He added that the facility had been struck two nights earlier:
President Donald Trump said:
> “I know exactly who it was, but I don’t want to say who it was. But you know it was along the shore. I don’t know if you read or saw, they have a big plant or a big facility where they send the, you know, where the ships come from. Two nights ago, we knocked that out. So, we hit them very hard.”
Reactions and Context
- The Pentagon referred questions to the White House, which has not yet responded.
- The press office of Venezuela’s government has not commented.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and U.S. military social media accounts have not posted about the strike.
- The CIA has been authorized by Trump to conduct covert operations in Venezuela, but the agency has not responded.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Total strikes | 29 |
| Total casualties | 105 |
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said in an interview with News Of Los Angeles that Trump “wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro ‘cries uncle.'”
Key Takeaways
- Trump claims a U.S. strike on a Venezuelan dock facility that loads drug boats.
- The strike is part of a broader campaign that has killed 105 people in 29 attacks.
- U.S. forces have seized two oil tankers and are pursuing a third in the region.
The announcement highlights a potential escalation of U.S. military actions against drug trafficking in South America.
