(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) The US launched another strike against a boat in the Caribbean on Thursday, and for the first time since the US began bombing vessels in the region, there are survivors, according to a report from Reuters.
The report cited an unnamed US official, who did not offer any more details about the strike. So far, there’s been no official confirmation from the Pentagon or President Trump, who has announced previous attacks on vessels in the region in posts on Truth Social.
The Thursday attack marks the sixth boat that the US has bombed since September 2. So far, the US has provided no evidence to back up its claims that the vessels were carrying drugs or that the 27 people extrajudicially executed were drug traffickers.
While most of the strikes have targeted boats that left Venezuela, at least one hit a vessel that left Colombia and killed Colombian nationals, according to a report from CNN. It also appears that a strike the US launched on Tuesday killed two citizens of Trinidad and Tobago, and the family of one of the men says he was a fisherman who was not involved in drug trafficking and was attempting to return home from a visit to Venezuela.
The Intercept has reported that while the US has been releasing videos of boats being hit by one missile strike, many of the attacks have required multiple strikes to sink the vessels and kill everyone onboard. In one of the attacks, a .50 caliber machine gun was used to sink the boat after it was hit by missiles.
US officials have been clear that the real goal of the US military campaign in the Caribbean is to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, and combating drug trafficking is just a pretext. A Pentagon official told The Hill that the US has 10,000 troops in the region, with the majority in Puerto Rico, along with eight warships and a submarine. According to The Washington Times, US military planners believe the force is enough to potentially capture strategic ports and airfields inside Venezuela.
The US has been carrying out provocative flights near Venezuela’s coast, which have included sending B-52 bombers to the region and special operations helicopters. President Trump confirmed on Wednesday that he has authorized the CIA to take covert action inside Venezuela and that the US is considering attacks on Venezuelan territory.
This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.
