US strikes alleged drug-carrying vessels in Pacific, killing six

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States struck two alleged drug-carrying vessels in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Sunday, killing six people on board, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Monday, as calls mounted for investigations into the strikes.

“These vessels were known by our intelligence to be associated with illicit narcotics smuggling, were carrying narcotics, and were transiting along a known narco-trafficking transit route,” Hegseth said in a post on X, which included a video of the boats being struck.

The U.S. has carried out more than a dozen strikes since September on vessels near the Venezuelan coast and, more recently, in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing more than 70 people, according to the U.S. defense secretary, as it escalates a military buildup in the Caribbean Sea.

The U.S. has alleged, without presenting evidence, that the boats it bombed were transporting drugs, but foreign leaders, some members of Congress, legal experts and family members of those killed have called for proof.

The United Nations human rights chief has called the U.S. strikes on alleged drug dealers unacceptable and a violation of international human rights law. Venezuela says they are illegal, amount to murder and are aggression against the sovereign South American country.

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Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused Donald Trump of seeking to topple his government, an allegation the U.S. president has downplayed despite reports of the administration’s close contact with Venezuela’s opposition.

In September, the U.S. built up its military presence in the Caribbean – including a nuclear submarine and a group of warships accompanying the world’s largest aircraft carrier – prompting Maduro to shore up security powers and deploy tens of thousands of troops around the country.

(Reporting by Katharine Jackson; Editing by Doina Chiacu)