The Pentagon has undermined the White House’s story about the Caribbean strikes. Questions are growing about a follow-up strike that reportedly killed two survivors of a boat already hit.
Both the White House and Pentagon are trying to shift blame. Some lawmakers say the attack could be a war crime. But officials are pointing the finger at Admiral Frank Bradley, who oversaw the operation, rather than Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“We’ve only just begun striking narco boats and putting narco-terrorists at the bottom of the ocean, because they’ve been poisoning the American people,” Hegseth said during a Tuesday Cabinet meeting.
He added that there had been a pause because “it’s hard to find boats to strike right now,” and said deterrence has to matter.
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Hegseth claimed he watched the first strike but did not personally see survivors. He defended the second strike, saying it was the “correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat.”
Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson said the strikes were legal under U.S. and international law. She repeated that Admiral Bradley made the follow-up decision under established authorities to destroy the vessel.
“Any follow-on strikes like those which were directed by Admiral Bradley, the secretary 100 percent agrees with,” Wilson added.
🚨 BREAKING: The Pentagon just blew up the White House’s entire cover story.
Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson openly confirmed that the Caribbean strikes, including the follow-on strike that hit survivors, were “presidentially directed” and fully backed by Pete Hegseth.
No more… pic.twitter.com/aJe3qw1TPF
— Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) December 2, 2025
Trump’s administration says it is at war with so-called “narco-terrorists.” The campaign began in early September and has reportedly killed more than 80 people so far. The follow-up strike on September 2, which killed survivors, may go against the Pentagon’s own Law of War Manual, which forbids attacks on shipwrecked people.
Democratic senators slammed the strikes. Jacky Rosen and Chris Van Hollen called the incident a potential war crime. Chris Murphy accused Hegseth of “passing the buck.”
Trump has deployed the world’s largest aircraft and other military assets to the Caribbean. Officials say the mission is counter-narcotics, but critics are skeptical.
The strikes and military buildup have caused tension in the region. Venezuela’s leftist leader, Nicolas Maduro, accused the U.S. of using drug trafficking as an excuse to push for regime change.
Maduro says there is no drug cultivation in Venezuela. He claims the country is being used as a trafficking route for Colombian cocaine against its will.
Featured image via X screengrab
