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This screen grab of unclassified US military footage shows the moment that an airstrike destroyed a boat allegedly carrying drugs in the Caribbean Sea on April 19, 2026.
(Photo by US Southern Command/screen grab)
'3 More Murders at Sea': Trump Boat-Bombing Spree Continues
One group lamented that "Congress has failed to step up and claim its power to end these violent strikes."
Apr 20, 2026
The Trump administration's accelerated bombing campaign targeting boats allegedly smuggling illicit drugs in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean claimed three more lives Sunday, bringing the total number of people killed in the illegal strikes to at least 181.
"On April 19... Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by designated terrorist organizations," US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said in a statement.
"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the Florida-based command said, without providing evidence. "Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No US military forces were harmed."
While the American public's attention has been focused on the US-Israeli war on Iran, the Trump administration has ramped up its boat-bombing campaign, striking at least 14 vessels so far this month compared with 12 in all of March.
There have been more than 50 such strikes since President Donald Trump launched the campaign early last September. Relatives of people killed in some of the boat strikes, as well as officials in Venezuela and Colombia, say that at least some of the victims were fishers who were not part of the illicit drug trade.
One expert said that even in cases of vessels that were involved in drug trafficking, the bombings were illegal and “the equivalent of straight-up massacring 16-year-old drug dealers on US street corners.”
A day after the US military attacked civilian boats in international waters for more than the 50th time, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday excoriated Iran's government for attacking civilian boats in international waters.
In addition to bombing boats—and seven countries since returning to office—Trump launched an invasion of Venezuela to abduct its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, who are jailed in the US awaiting trial on questionable narco-trafficking charges.
Responding to Sunday's strike, the Project on Government Oversight said on social media that the Trump administration "is still blowing up boats in Latin American waters" and lamented that "Congress has failed to step up and claim its power to end these violent strikes."
US lawmakers led by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) in the House of Representatives and Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) in the Senate tried and failed to pass war powers resolutions in the Republican-controlled Congress aimed at curbing Trump's boat strike spree.
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The Trump administration's accelerated bombing campaign targeting boats allegedly smuggling illicit drugs in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean claimed three more lives Sunday, bringing the total number of people killed in the illegal strikes to at least 181.
"On April 19... Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by designated terrorist organizations," US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said in a statement.
"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the Florida-based command said, without providing evidence. "Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No US military forces were harmed."
While the American public's attention has been focused on the US-Israeli war on Iran, the Trump administration has ramped up its boat-bombing campaign, striking at least 14 vessels so far this month compared with 12 in all of March.
There have been more than 50 such strikes since President Donald Trump launched the campaign early last September. Relatives of people killed in some of the boat strikes, as well as officials in Venezuela and Colombia, say that at least some of the victims were fishers who were not part of the illicit drug trade.
One expert said that even in cases of vessels that were involved in drug trafficking, the bombings were illegal and “the equivalent of straight-up massacring 16-year-old drug dealers on US street corners.”
A day after the US military attacked civilian boats in international waters for more than the 50th time, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday excoriated Iran's government for attacking civilian boats in international waters.
In addition to bombing boats—and seven countries since returning to office—Trump launched an invasion of Venezuela to abduct its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, who are jailed in the US awaiting trial on questionable narco-trafficking charges.
Responding to Sunday's strike, the Project on Government Oversight said on social media that the Trump administration "is still blowing up boats in Latin American waters" and lamented that "Congress has failed to step up and claim its power to end these violent strikes."
US lawmakers led by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) in the House of Representatives and Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) in the Senate tried and failed to pass war powers resolutions in the Republican-controlled Congress aimed at curbing Trump's boat strike spree.
From Your Site Articles
- 4 More Killed in Pacific Boat Strike as White House Ramps Up Demands for Venezuelan Oil ›
- Death Toll Up to 128 People as Trump Pentagon Commits Two More Killings at Sea ›
- Trump ‘Murder Spree’ Continues With 11 More People Killed in US Boat Strikes ›
- US Kills at Least 2 More People in Yet Another Illegal Boat Bombing ›
- Rights Groups Warn Countries to End Complicity in Trump’s High Seas Murder Spree | Common Dreams ›
- 'These Are Murders': Trump Killing Spree Hits At Least 185 | Common Dreams ›
- 13 of the Nearly 200 People Murdered by Trump and Hegseth Identified for First Time | Common Dreams ›
The Trump administration's accelerated bombing campaign targeting boats allegedly smuggling illicit drugs in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean claimed three more lives Sunday, bringing the total number of people killed in the illegal strikes to at least 181.
"On April 19... Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by designated terrorist organizations," US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said in a statement.
"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the Florida-based command said, without providing evidence. "Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No US military forces were harmed."
While the American public's attention has been focused on the US-Israeli war on Iran, the Trump administration has ramped up its boat-bombing campaign, striking at least 14 vessels so far this month compared with 12 in all of March.
There have been more than 50 such strikes since President Donald Trump launched the campaign early last September. Relatives of people killed in some of the boat strikes, as well as officials in Venezuela and Colombia, say that at least some of the victims were fishers who were not part of the illicit drug trade.
One expert said that even in cases of vessels that were involved in drug trafficking, the bombings were illegal and “the equivalent of straight-up massacring 16-year-old drug dealers on US street corners.”
A day after the US military attacked civilian boats in international waters for more than the 50th time, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday excoriated Iran's government for attacking civilian boats in international waters.
In addition to bombing boats—and seven countries since returning to office—Trump launched an invasion of Venezuela to abduct its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, who are jailed in the US awaiting trial on questionable narco-trafficking charges.
Responding to Sunday's strike, the Project on Government Oversight said on social media that the Trump administration "is still blowing up boats in Latin American waters" and lamented that "Congress has failed to step up and claim its power to end these violent strikes."
US lawmakers led by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) in the House of Representatives and Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) in the Senate tried and failed to pass war powers resolutions in the Republican-controlled Congress aimed at curbing Trump's boat strike spree.
From Your Site Articles
- 4 More Killed in Pacific Boat Strike as White House Ramps Up Demands for Venezuelan Oil ›
- Death Toll Up to 128 People as Trump Pentagon Commits Two More Killings at Sea ›
- Trump ‘Murder Spree’ Continues With 11 More People Killed in US Boat Strikes ›
- US Kills at Least 2 More People in Yet Another Illegal Boat Bombing ›
- Rights Groups Warn Countries to End Complicity in Trump’s High Seas Murder Spree | Common Dreams ›
- 'These Are Murders': Trump Killing Spree Hits At Least 185 | Common Dreams ›
- 13 of the Nearly 200 People Murdered by Trump and Hegseth Identified for First Time | Common Dreams ›
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