Now that he's seen as playing a role in actual killings, not merely defending others accused of murder on the battlefield, President Donald Trump must decide whether he shares Hegseth's insouciance. If he doesn't share his cavalier views on the subject, Trump needs to fire him. If he doesn't fire him, Trump in effect tells the world-including the 2 million service members of the U.S. armed forces-that he too is indifferent to the laws of war,
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Tuesday on his social media account X that the U.S. military had launched three extrajudicial attacks on four vessels sailing in the Pacific on Monday. Fourteen people were killed in the operation, and there was one survivor. Hegseth claimed, without providing evidence, that the vessels were transporting drugs and that their crew members, killed in the operation, belonged to designated terrorist organizations. He did not specify which organizations.
President Donald Trump disclosed Tuesday that the U.S. government had "knocked off" what he said was a total of three alleged drug smuggling boats, all apparently from Venezuela, a country whose leader his administration has villainized while dramatically escalating the use of deadly force in a bid to disrupt the Latin American narcotics trade. The president, speaking to reporters outside the White House, offered no other details about the previously undisclosed incident.
Grossi noted that the centrifuges are no longer operational due to significant physical damage caused by the U.S. attack, supporting Trump's claim of success.