WASHINGTON, D.C. – Top Republican and Democratic legislators on the United States Senate Armed Services Committee have vowed to conduct “vigorous oversight” after United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly directed US military troops to “kill everybody” aboard a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean Sea.
“The Committee is aware of recent news reports, and the Department of Defense’s initial response regarding alleged follow-on strikes on suspected narcotics vessels in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility,” said Republican Roger Wicker and his Democratic colleague, Jack Reed, in a joint statement referring to the Miami-based US Southern Command that oversees US military operations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
“The Committee has directed inquiries to the department, and we will be conducting vigorous oversight to determine the facts related to the circumstances,” they added.
The Republican-controlled US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee also said it will conduct a similar inquiry.
The Committee said it is “committed to providing rigorous oversight of the Department of Defense’s military operations in the Caribbean,” said the Ranking Members on the Committee, Mike Rogers and Adam Smith, in a joint statement on Saturday.
“We take seriously the reports of follow-on strikes on boats alleged to be ferrying narcotics in the SOUTHCOM region and are taking bipartisan action to gather a full accounting of the operation in question,” they added.
Reports indicate that Hegseth gave the order in early September, when the Caribbean operations began, to “kill everybody”.
The US military reportedly struck a suspected drug vessel twice in the Caribbean Sea, killing all on board, after the first attempt failed to yield the desired result.
But the US Defense Secretary has dismissed as “fake news” reports about his alleged order.
“As usual, the fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland,” he wrote on X.
“As we’ve said from the beginning, and in every statement, these highly effective strikes are specifically intended to be ‘lethal, kinetic strikes. The declared intent is to stop lethal drugs, destroy narco-boats, and kill the narco-terrorists who are poisoning the American people.
“Every trafficker we kill is affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization,” he added.
US President Donald Trump warned last week that the US military would “very soon” take action on land against suspected drug trafficking networks in Venezuela, broadening military operations that have focused on the Caribbean Sea.
“In recent weeks, you’ve been working to deter Venezuelan drug traffickers, of which there are many,” Trump told US military troops last week.
“Of course, there aren’t too many coming in by sea anymore. You probably noticed that people aren’t wanting to be delivered by sea, and we’ll also start stopping them by land. The land is easier, but that’s going to start very soon.”
Last week, Trump designated Cartel de los Soles, a group he claimed is controlled by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, as a foreign terrorist organization. Pundits say the designation would authorise Trump to impose new sanctions on Maduro and his associates.
Maduro has flatly denied any connection with Cartel de los Soles, claiming instead that Trump is “fabricating” a war against him.
In what the US military has labeled “Operation Southern Spear,” it has assembled over a dozen warships and 15,000 troops in the Caribbean Sea.
The US also reported that its military has killed over 80 suspected drug traffickers in the Caribbean Sea since the so-called anti-drug trafficking operation began in early September.
Meanwhile, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar is seeking to reassure her citizens that the decision to allow the US military to set up a radar system on Tobago is not related to a possible attack on Venezuela.
She told the Trinidad Express newspaper on Monday that the military might that the US already has in the region, including the US Navy’s USS Gerald R Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, is more than sufficient.
“The US owns thousands of satellites; they own the GPS, they have almost 20 per cent of their navy in the Caribbean with the most sophisticated military communications technology in existence. They don’t need to install a radar in our country for any military purpose. They could monitor the entire Caribbean from the Gerald Ford aircraft carrier. Sensible people understand these facts,” she said.
Last Tuesday, Persad-Bissessar met with the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, the highest-ranking military officer and the principal military adviser to US President Trump.
She said then the meeting focused on tackling narco-trafficking and regional security, not Venezuela, and that contrary to public speculation, she was the one who requested the radar from the US Embassy months ago.
“Months ago, I made the request to the local US Embassy for a US-supplied radar as a temporary solution for our poor surveillance capabilities. A system will also be installed at a site in Trinidad until a permanent replacement for our ineffective existing radar system can be installed.
“Tobago’s air and sea territory are the most secure they have ever been, and the people of Tobago are the safest they have ever been. I am ultimately responsible for their safety and security and will ensure they never have a bloody year like 2024.
“Fights for drug turf mainly drove the 2024 murders in Tobago (26 in total). Several Trinidadian criminals went to Tobago and sought to create havoc with gang violence and drug trafficking,” she told the newspaper.
Defence Minister Wayne Sturge, speaking at a news conference over the weekend, urged citizens to avoid “panic mode” over the presence of United States Marines and technical personnel in Tobago.
“The airport in Crown Point is not a launchpad for any military operations. In the Atlantic, very close by, is the USS Gerald Ford, the largest and most destructive moving object ever built, and it is there for that purpose. There is no need for our country, particularly Tobago, to be used for any military operation,” he said, insisting that Trinidad and Tobago have benefited from US operations in the region even as Washington pursues its own strategic objectives.
According to Sturge, the installation underway at ANR Robinson Airport involves new radar equipment intended to strengthen Trinidad and Tobago’s surveillance capabilities, particularly in the fight against drug trafficking, arms smuggling, and the increasingly concerning trend of human trafficking into Tobago.
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