"Twenty-eight paragraphs into the story that first focused attention on the murder Pete Hegseth ordered back in September (though as it notes, Nick Turse first revealed the second shot just days after the attack) is this revelation: it took four strikes to kill first the people then destroy any debris from the targeted boats. The boat in the first strike was hit a total of four times, twice to kill the crew and twice more to sink it, four people familiar with the operation said."
"There's Trump's release of Juan Orlando Hernández, a proven high-level threat, even as forces that normally prevent turbulence in the Middle East gather off of Venezuela's oil fields. There's the many ways, starting with the destruction of USAID and definitely including Trump's trade war, that has added to global instability. There's the cost involved in drone-striking small boats. There's the neutering of legal advisors who might have saved Admiral Frank Bradley from being underbussed by the guy who promoted him."
Four strikes were required to kill the people aboard and destroy debris from the targeted boats. The first struck boat was hit four times: twice to kill the crew and twice to sink it. The most powerful military in history required four shots to complete the action. The episode exemplifies performative and feckless use of force and the concealment of operational shortcomings. Related actions include the release of Juan Orlando Hernández, forces gathering near Venezuela's oil fields, cuts to USAID, trade policies increasing instability, costly drone strikes on small boats, and sidelining of legal advisors and robust press oversight.
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