U.S. Has Now Killed More Than 100 People In Strikes Against Alleged Drug Vessels

The U.S. has now killed more than 100 people across the different strikes against alleged drug vessels after the latest attacks in the Eastern Pacific.

The U.S. Southern Command said in a social media publication that the attacks took place on December 18 at "the direction of U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

"Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted lethal kinetic strikes on two vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations in international waters. Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and were engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the publication noted.

"A total of five male narco-terrorists were killed during these actions - three in the first vessel and two in the second vessel. No U.S. military forces were harmed," it added.

The U.S. has picked up the pace of its military campaign in the region, considering the previous strike took place a day prior. Forces killed four people after another strike in the Eastern Pacific.

The Trump administration has told Congress it considers itself to be in an "armed conflict" with drug cartels and has labeled those killed as "unlawful combatants," citing a classified Justice Department finding that it says permits lethal action without judicial review, as CNN explains.

The operation has drawn growing criticism from legal experts and lawmakers, particularly over a follow-up strike on Sept. 2 that killed two survivors of an initial attack, with several experts have said that second strike could constitute an extrajudicial killing under international law. Hegseth has rejected declassifying the footage and won't release it publicly.

The administration has also been criticized by some Republicans who oppose the campaign. One of them is Sen. Rand Paul, who has joined Democrats in introducing measures to force President Donald Trump to go through Congress should the administration seek to escalate further.

Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, Paul criticized the broader campaign and rejected the administration's goal to oust Venezuela's authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro: "We have never decided to just shoot unarmed smugglers without proof. It's horrendous. It's illegal. It's immoral... I'm not sending American kids to die for oil."