President Trump announced on Truth Social on Monday afternoon that the United States military has blown up a second drug cartel boat out of Venezuela. The action led to the deaths of three narcoterrorists while no U.S. servicemembers were harmed during the operation.
Trump also issued a warning to others attempting to transport drugs to the United States. Here are his full remarks:
This morning, on my Orders, U.S. Military Forces conducted a SECOND Kinetic Strike against positively identified, extraordinarily violent drug trafficking cartels and narcoterrorists in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility. The Strike occurred while these confirmed narcoterrorists from Venezuela were in International Waters transporting illegal narcotics (A DEADLY WEAPON POISONING AMERICANS!) headed to the U.S. These extremely violent drug trafficking cartels POSE A THREAT to U.S. National Security, Foreign Policy, and vital U.S. Interests. The Strike resulted in 3 male terrorists killed in action. No U.S. Forces were harmed in this Strike. BE WARNED — IF YOU ARE TRANSPORTING DRUGS THAT CAN KILL AMERICANS, WE ARE HUNTING YOU! The illicit activities by these cartels have wrought DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES ON AMERICAN COMMUNITIES FOR DECADES, killing millions of American Citizens. NO LONGER. Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!
The Department of War also announced the operation and posted what appears to be a video of the strike:
. @POTUS “This morning, on my Orders, U.S. Military Forces conducted a SECOND Kinetic Strike against positively identified, extraordinarily violent drug trafficking cartels and narcoterrorists in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility. The Strike occurred while these confirmed… pic.twitter.com/KQYiEpqsGb
— DOW Rapid Response (@DOWResponse) September 15, 2025
This is the second such strike in less than two weeks. As I reported earlier this month, we hit another drug vessel out of Venezuela and killed 11 members of Tren de Aragua who were headed to the U.S.
As a matter of fact, not long before the president made the announcement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during an interview with Fox News that we need to continue to blow up these boats to send a message:
What needs to start happening is some of these boats need to get blown up. Some of these boats need to be not just intercepted but stopped, no matter what direction they plan to head. We can’t live in a world where all of a sudden they do a U-turn and so we can’t touch them anymore. And I’ll tell you something: Since we did that, the number of boats heading towards the United States suddenly dropped dramatically. Now, maybe they won’t be sustained or continued, but we’re not — and the President’s made clear — we are not going to continue to allow these cartels to flood the United States with drugs, be it through the water or through land.
Related: No More U-Turns: Rubio Unveils New Rules of Engagement at Sea
This is a developing story.
When you sign up to become a PJ Media VIP member, you play an important role in giving conservative voices like ours a platform. If the last week has proven anything, it's that we're needed now more than ever. Join us today and get some cool perks for yourself, like access to exclusive content and an ad-free experience. Plus, you can comment and interact with our writers, editors, and other readers. We can't wait to have you!
Join the conversation as a VIP Member