The US military attacked a vessel from Venezuela in the Caribbean on Tuesday that was carrying illegal drugs, officials said, in the first known operation since the Trump administration's recent surge of warships to the region.
President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House: "We just, over the last few minutes, literally shot out a boat, a drug-carrying boat, a lot of drugs in that boat."
"And there's more where that came from. We have a lot of drugs pouring into our country, coming in for a long time ... These came out of Venezuela," Trump said. He said the Pentagon would soon be providing further details.
He later shared a video on his Truth Social platform that appeared to show footage from overhead drones of a speedboat at sea exploding and then on fire.
"The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No US Forces were harmed in this strike," Trump said.
Asked to comment, a defense official confirmed the US military conducted a "precision strike against a drug vessel" but declined to elaborate on how the attack was carried out, what kind of drugs were being targeted or who was on board.
The official only said the vessel was "operated by a designated narco-terrorist organization."
"More information will be made available at a later time," the official said.
US cracks down on drug trade
The Venezuelan Communications Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The United States has deployed warships in the southern Caribbean with the aim of following through on Trump's pledge to crack down on drug cartels.
Tuesday's strike appeared to be the first such military operation in the region to that effect. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a post on X, said the boat had departed from Venezuela and was struck in the southern Caribbean.
Although Rubio called it "a lethal strike," the Trump administration did not immediately confirm whether anyone was killed.
Seven US warships, along with one nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, are either in the region or expected to be there soon, bringing along more than 4,500 sailors and Marines.
While US Coast Guard and Navy ships regularly operate in the Southern Caribbean, the current buildup exceeds the usual deployments in the region.
In the naval force are warships, including USS San Antonio, USS Iwo Jima, and USS Fort Lauderdale. Some can carry aerial assets like helicopters, while others can also deploy Tomahawk cruise missiles.
The US military has also been flying P-8 spy planes in the region to gather intelligence, US officials have said. They have been flying over international waters.