Hegseth says he did not see survivors after first strike on drug boat

3/12/2025 7:32

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday he had watched the first U.S. strike in September on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in real time but did not see survivors in the water or the second lethal strike that he described as being carried out in the "fog of war."



Hegseth, speaking at a Cabinet meeting alongside President Donald Trump, defended the follow-up strike that has drawn bipartisan scrutiny from Congress and concerns about the legality of the administration's moves.



The Pentagon chief's remarks were his most fulsome explanation of the events on September 2, when U.S. forces blew up the first in a series of alleged drug-carrying vessels as part of Trump's efforts to curtail the inflow of narcotics from Latin America and put pressure on Venezuela.



Hegseth has faced particular scrutiny about the strikes after the Washington Post reported the commander overseeing the operation ordered a second strike to take out two survivors who were clinging to the structure in the water in order to comply with the Pentagon chief's direction that everyone be killed.