FROM ABC NEWS: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth responded to a report that he ordered the military to kill all passengers aboard a boat suspected of ferrying drugs in the Caribbean Sea in September.
According to The Washington Post, the Sept. 2 boat strike initially left two survivors clinging to the boat. The Post alleges Adm. Mitch Bradley, head of Special Operations Command, then ordered a second strike in order to comply with Hegseth’s orders and to ensure the survivors couldn’t call on other traffickers to retrieve them and their cargo.
Critics of the Trump administration and some legal experts have questioned the legality of the strikes. Under the Geneva Conventions, wounded or sick combatants are to be collected and cared for by either side in a conflict.
In a Friday post on X, Hegseth said:
“As usual, the fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland.
As we’ve said from the beginning, and in every statement, these highly effective strikes are specifically intended to be “lethal, kinetic strikes.” The declared intent is to stop lethal drugs, destroy narco-boats, and kill the narco-terrorists who are poisoning the American people. Every trafficker we kill is affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization.
The Biden administration preferred the kid gloves approach, allowing millions of people — including dangerous cartels and unvetted Afghans — to flood our communities with drugs and violence. The Trump administration has sealed the border and gone on offense against narco-terrorists. Biden coddled terrorists, we kill them.
Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict—and approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command.
Our warriors in SOUTHCOM put their lives on the line every day to protect the Homeland from narco-terrorists — and I will ALWAYS have their back.
We have only just begun to kill narco-terrorists.
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) November 28, 2025
As usual, the fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland.
As we’ve said from the beginning, and in every statement, these highly effective strikes are specifically…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) November 28, 2025
READ MORE AT NBC NEWS
The Dennis Michael Lynch Podcast archive is available below, with the most recent on top. Never miss an episode. Subscribe to the show by downloading The DML News App or go to Apple Podcasts.
