New details emerge about controversial Sept. 2 strike on alleged drug boat that killed survivors
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
New details emerged Wednesday about the second strike by the U.S. military on an alleged drug smuggling boat on Sept. 2 that killed two survivors, according to a source familiar with the incident, including that the Pentagon had contingency plans for dealing with such situations.
The strike was the first U.S. military airstrike to target an alleged cartel boat the Trump administration said was smuggling drugs toward the United States.
An initial strike on the boat left two survivors who were later seen climbing back onto the boat, the source said.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Bradley was in operational control of the second strike and that that the admiral was authorized to carry out per Hegseth's previous orders.
At the time of the Sept. 2 strike, Bradley was commander of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), the command overseeing high-level special operations missions. He assumed command of SOCOM the following month.
Questions about the legality of the second strike have been swirling around Washington since it was first reported last week by the Washington Post.
The source told ABC News that, as is typical with targeted strikes, a military lawyer was with Bradley providing legal advice throughout the Sept. 2 incident to ensure any actions were legally authorized.
On Wednesday, President Donald Trump told reporters that he would support the public release of any video the military may have of the incident.
"Whatever they have we'd certainly release, no problem," said Trump.
Hegseth reaffirmed on Tuesday that he had seen a live feed of the Sept. 2 operation but said that, after the initial strike, he had stepped away to carry on with his schedule and did not "personally see" the second strike or the two survivors killed.
After the first strike, Hegseth said, "I moved on to my next meeting" and found out sometime later that there had been an additional strike that sank the boat and "eliminated the threat."
Hegseth said Bradley had made "the right call, we have his back."
It appears that the second strike was in line with a contingency plan to deal with potential survivor situations that had been developed by the Pentagon prior to the first use of military force against drug smuggling boats, according to the source familiar with the incident.
If there were survivors from an initial strike on a boat, the U.S. military would try to rescue them if they were deemed to no longer be "in the fight" because they were shipwrecked and in need of help, the source said the plan called for.
But if they were deemed to be in communications with other cartel members, or took what appeared to be hostile action, they could then be targeted again, according to the plan, the source said.
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What a debacle for democrats who smeared the Secretary of defense and members of the military. They should be ashamed.
I'd hope lessons were learned, but as we saw repeatedly with the fake Russian stories, Senators like Kelly and Schiff will seize upon any lie and smear whoever is necessary to "get Trump" and their gullible followers will continuously fall for it.
-- A Navy admiral told lawmakers Thursday that there was no "kill them all" order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as Congress scrutinizes an attack that killed two survivors of an initial strike on an alleged drug boat in international waters near Venezuela.
Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley "was very clear that he was given no such order, to give no quarter or to kill them all. He was given an order that, of course, was written down in great detail," said Sen. Tom Cotton, who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee, as he exited a classified briefing.
"If there were survivors from an initial strike on a boat, the U.S. military would try to rescue them if they were deemed to no longer be "in the fight" because they were shipwrecked and in need of help, the source said the plan called for.
But if they were deemed to be in communications with other cartel members, or took what appeared to be hostile action, they could then be targeted again, according to the plan, the source said."
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Believe we need some more information as to what exactly happened before you can go claiming nothing to see here.
Would like to see how they determined there was communication with cartel members that somehow made them a threat. They were just blown out of the water, literally, by an unseen ordinance from an unknown origin inthe sky. WHo is going to race out there to this debris knowing they also would be blown out of the water. Let's let the facts play out. The story from the DOD and Hegs has changed a few times already. WHy is there different variations of the story ? I'll withhold my opinion till verified further.
Not really. We've gone from Hegseth ordered a double tap to murder all survivors to knowing a NAVY JAG lawyer sat and watched the actions of the survivors live before agreeing with the Admiral in charge that destroying the boat was justified.
It was a lawyer run engagement the entire time. In no world should an admiral relying on legal advice from a military lawyer before acting be considered guilty of a "war crime" for actions he took with guidance of legal counsel.
Well ive watched a member who has seen the tape, say there was no radio involved.
You're making an assumption here, this was the first boat that was targeted. Here you are speeding along with four large and loud outboard motors humming along, then all at once BOOM. My first thought, as a survivor, would be that the huge fuel storage tank onboard must've had a leak and a spark ignited it. After the fire subsides you climb back aboard, take stock of what you have left and collect as much as possible of your cargo to continue on with another boat and if our military monitored radio traffic in the area and concluded they called for another boat, that meant they were still in the game. Another boat had no idea they were hit by a missile, it was just a boating accident. Now if the two survivors starting shooting flairs off then they were done, but that isn't what they did.
true, if what you have stated is accurate, as i was not aware this was the first boat stricken.
And I will be quite frank that i believe these strikes are wrong. How difficlt could it be if all Hegssays is true, to stop and board these boats ? Arrest operators.
Forgive me if i'm a tad skeptical about anything 47 asks US All to believe, as he is a proven LIAR, often.
One of the representatives that saw the second video today, said there was no evidence of a radio call going out...
Kelly was one of the guys who pushed the lie (debunked even by the Biden admin after the election) that Russia was paying bounties to kill American soldiers in order to attack Trump.
seems to be a pattern with him.
It didn’t have to be like this.
If the argument were publicly made that these boats were smuggling drugs, and we should use drone strikes or whatever to stop them, it might have had bipartisan support. The administration could share intel with Congress, get an official authorization, and go to town on these assholes.
Instead, they just decided to bomb random boats and we’re all just supposed to take their word for it that these people needed to be exploded instead of arrested. And you’re stupid or a traitor if you even question it.
I like the idea of going after drug lords. I don’t like not knowing who we are killing, and I don’t like an administration that responds with “how dare you?!” when we ask for proof that it was necessary and legal.
Yes it did. It's sends a message. They day's of the Joe Biden "Don't" are over.
Democrats in congress have shown that they cannot properly handle intel.
I guess it’s asking too much for you to explain why.
Have they now? Or are you more concerned about the Secretary of Defense?
The new Dick Wad Cowboy Diplomacy is in town! Who the fuck cares if some possibly innocent foreigners die, right? It's not our family members! Who cares about the law! Who cares about democracy! Who cares about anyone who isn't white, conservative and Christian, right? /s
Fucking disgusting.
7.1 tons of cocaine seized in Caribbean, 11 people arrested unharmed, Colombia navy say
More than 7 tons of cocaine was seized from boats in the Caribbean in recent days, Colombia's navy said, as the U.S. continues to conduct lethal strikes on alleged drug-ferrying vessels in the region.
Authorities confiscated about 7.1 tons of cocaine during two operations in the Caribbean, the country's navy said in a social media post on Wednesday. One interdiction took place 90 nautical miles from Barranquilla, a city on Colombia's northern coast, and the other one occurred about 70 miles south of that in the Gulf of Morrosquillo.
The cocaine was valued at more than $340 million and 11 people — eight Colombians, two Venezuelans and one Jamaican — were arrested "without affecting their integrity or their lives," the navy said in a separate statement.
Authorities released images of the operations, showing photos of the boats involved as well as bricks of the alleged narcotics displayed on the ground next to officers and the detained suspects.
Well, the Columbian Navy agrees - even shows what most are denying.