**Published Oct 14, 2025 • 1 minute read**
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President Donald Trump was seen walking across the South Lawn of the White House early Tuesday, October 14, 2025, after returning from a trip to Israel and Egypt. (Photo by Mark Schiefelbein / AP)
**WASHINGTON** — President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. military targeted another small boat off the coast of Venezuela, which he alleged was involved in drug trafficking.
In a social media post on Tuesday, the Republican president stated that the strike resulted in the deaths of six individuals aboard the vessel, with no U.S. personnel injured. This marks the fifth lethal strike in the Caribbean, as the Trump administration has maintained that it views suspected drug traffickers as unlawful combatants who warrant military action.
Frustration is mounting on Capitol Hill among lawmakers from both parties. Some Republicans are demanding more clarity from the White House regarding the legal basis and specifics of the strikes, while Democrats argue that these actions breach both U.S. and international law.
Trump indicated that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized the strike on Tuesday morning and shared a video of the operation, consistent with previous announcements.
He asserted that the strike took place in international waters and that “intelligence” indicated the vessel was involved in narcotics trafficking, linked to “narcoterrorist networks,” and operating along a known drug trafficking route.
Last week, the Senate voted on a war powers resolution aimed at preventing the Trump administration from conducting such strikes without explicit congressional approval, but the measure did not pass.
In a memo to Congress obtained by The Associated Press, the Trump administration stated it had “determined that the United States is in a non-international armed conflict with these designated terrorist organizations,” and that Trump had instructed the Pentagon to “conduct operations against them in accordance with the law of armed conflict.”
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