Officials spoke to the media regarding the successful progress of Operation Southern Spear, the large-scale counter-narco-terrorism campaign in the Western Hemisphere, one year after the operation launched in September 2025.
The strike was conducted under the U.S. military's Joint Task Force Southern Spear, which is part of the Trump administration's efforts to curb illicit drug smuggling operations into the U.S. mainland.
The strike was part of "Joint Task Force Southern Spear" which targets alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. The military has conducted dozens of strikes in recent months, which have killed over 100 people.
"On Feb. 5, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations," SOUTHCOM said