President Donald Trump has stated that the US has carried out a strike on a 'dock area' linked to alleged Venezuelan drug boats. This announcement was made during a press briefing in Florida, where Trump discussed a 'major explosion' that occurred last week at the location where drugs are purportedly loaded onto boats.
Specifics regarding the dock's location or the role of US military or CIA forces in the operation were not disclosed. The Venezuelan government has yet to comment on the incident, and it remains unclear whether the strike occurred within Venezuelan territory.
Since September, the US has attacked what it claims are drug-smuggling vessels, targeting over 20 crafts, predominantly from Venezuela, in the Pacific and Caribbean, reportedly resulting in at least 100 deaths.
The latest strike, which took place on Monday, was confirmed by US Southern Command, which stated two 'narco-terrorists' were killed in the action. Trump has previously indicated the possibility of land strikes in Venezuela and authorized covert CIA operations aimed at increasing pressure on President Nicolás Maduro.
When pressed by journalists about potential CIA involvement in the most recent strike, Trump refrained from confirming but suggested he knew who was responsible. He emphasized the significance of the targeted area, stating: 'We hit all the boats, and now we hit the area... it's the implementation area.'
This is not the first time Trump has referenced such an operation, having previously mentioned a US strike on a significant facility in a recent radio interview, albeit without providing ample details. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has noted that it usually releases images or videos following strikes on drug vessels, yet no such materials have been revealed regarding the dock incident.
The US has labeled these operations as attacks against terrorist entities engaged in drug trafficking aimed at American markets. Currently, the US has deployed 15,000 troops alongside various military assets to combat the influx of harmful drugs such as fentanyl and cocaine.
The head of the US military has justified the deployments, clarifying that this is the largest troop engagement in the Caribbean since the 1989 invasion of Panama. Amongst the involved naval assets is the USS Gerald Ford, the largest aircraft carrier, from where US helicopters reportedly launched actions against an oil tanker near Venezuela on December 10.
In response, the Venezuelan government has condemned US sequestration of oil tankers as acts of piracy, asserting that they utilize oil profits to fund criminal activities. While Maduro denies U.S. allegations of cartel leadership, he also accuses the US of using its anti-drug efforts as a guise for regime change to access Venezuela’s abundant oil reserves.
