US strikes hit vessels in Pacific as Washington ramps up pressure around Venezuela

The US military says it killed eight people in new attacks on vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean, just days after US forces seized a Venezuelan oil tanker and amid a broader military buildup across Latin America.

In a social media post, US Military Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) said it carried out “lethal kinetic strikes” against three vessels in international waters on Monday, acting under the direction of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

According to SOUTHCOM, eight people were killed in total.

“Three in the first vessel, two in the second and three in the third,” the command said, while claiming, without presenting evidence,that those killed were linked to drug trafficking.

The latest incident adds to a growing toll. Since September, at least 90 people have been killed in similar US attacks on dozens of vessels in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near Venezuela. International law experts have criticised the operations as extrajudicial killings carried out by the US military.

The strikes have also triggered scrutiny at home. US lawmakers have questioned Hegseth over his role in authorising the attacks, including whether he personally ordered a second strike on a boat in September that targeted two people who survived an initial attack and were left clinging to debris.

At the same time, the Pentagon has expanded its military footprint in the region, deploying warships, a submarine, drones and fighter jets to the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. Washington says the buildup is aimed at countering drug smuggling.

Venezuela, however, sees a different motive. Caracas has accused the US of using the attacks and military expansion to clear the way for foreign powers “to rob Venezuela’s immeasurable oil and gas wealth”. The accusation comes after US forces seized an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast last week, with President Donald Trump telling reporters, “I assume we’re going to keep the oil.”

The pressure is also moving closer to Venezuela’s borders. On Monday, Trinidad and Tobago confirmed it had authorised US military aircraft to use its airports “in the coming weeks” for what it described as “logistical” operations, including “facilitating supply replenishment and routine personnel rotations”.

The Caribbean nation lies just 12km from Venezuela at its closest point and has openly supported the US military buildup, unlike several other governments in Central and South America. Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has said she would rather see drug traffickers “blown to pieces” than have them kill citizens of her country.