WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military said Thursday that it had conducted two more strikes against boats it said were smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing five people.
U.S. Southern Command posted on social media, "Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and were engaged in narco-trafficking operations," though it did not provide evidence. It posted videos of each boat speeding through water before being struck by an explosion.
The military said three people in one vessel and two in the other were killed.
The attacks broughtthe total number of known boat strikesto 28 while at least 104 people have been killed, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration. President Donald Trump hasjustified the attacksas a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States and asserted the U.S. is engaged in an"armed conflict" with drug cartels.
The administration is facingincreasing scrutiny from lawmakersover the boat strike campaign. The first attack in early September involveda follow-up strike that killed two survivorsclinging to the wreckage of a boat after the first hit.
