Hegseth says 14 people were killed in strikes on alleged drug-carrying boats in the Pacific Ocean

The U.S. military on Monday carried out three strikes on four vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean that were allegedly trafficking narcotics, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday

The U.S. military on Monday carried out three strikes on four vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean that were allegedly trafficking narcotics, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday.

Hegseth said in a statement on X that the strikes killed 14 “narco-terrorists” and that there was one survivor. Mexican authorities took over responsibility for rescuing the survivor.

Hegseth said that the boats were "operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations (DTO) trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific" and said they were known to "our intelligence apparatus."

The defense secretary included a video in his post marked "unclassified" showing boats in the water being hit by the strikes and suddenly on fire.

No additional details about the vessels or the alleged narcotics they were carrying were provided. Hegseth also didn't share from where the boats originated.