🔗 Share this article US Navy Commander to Inform Lawmakers as Bipartisan Examination Intensifies Over Maritime Engagement A high-ranking American naval officer is scheduled to deliver a classified briefing to congressional members overseeing the armed forces this week, as investigators examine a US attack on a vessel in the Caribbean Sea. The incident, which allegedly targeted a boat transporting drugs, reportedly included a follow-up engagement that killed any survivors. Administration Justifies Strikes as Self-Defense The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, on the start of the week asserted that the second strike was carried out “in self-defence” and in accordance with laws governing armed conflict. Bipartisan scrutiny has mounted over a account that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth gave a spoken command in September to attack the boat. Democratic lawmakers have argued the claims, first reported last week, could constitute a war crime, and GOP members have also expressed their apprehensions about the legality of the strike on 2 September. The Congressional armed services committees have opened inquiries into the recent US armed engagements on vessels in the Caribbean region and Pacific waters. “Secretary Hegseth authorised Adm [Frank M] Bradley to execute these kinetic strikes,” stated Leavitt. “Adm Bradley acted well within his mandate and the legal framework, directing the operation to guarantee the boat was destroyed and the danger to the United States of America was eliminated.” In her comments to reporters, Leavitt did not challenge the account that there were survivors after the first strike. Her justification came following ex-President Donald Trump a day earlier said he “wouldn’t have wanted that – not a second strike” when asked about the event. Mounting Legislative Concern and Internal Support Late on Monday, Hegseth posted: “Adm Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a consummate professional, and has my full and complete backing. I support him and the combat decisions he has made – on the September 2nd operation and all others since.” A thirty days following the engagement, Bradley was elevated from commander of Joint Special Operations Command to commander of USSOCOM. Concern over the government’s armed actions against alleged drug-smuggling vessels has been building in the legislature, but details of this subsequent attack stunned many legislators from across the aisle and sparked serious questions about the lawfulness of the operations and the broader policy in the region, particularly toward Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. The congressional members said they did not know whether last week’s report was accurate, and some Republicans were doubtful. Nevertheless, they stated the reported targeting of survivors of an initial rocket attack presented grave issues and merited additional investigation. White House and Military Officials Reiterate Stance The administration commented after the commander-in-chief on the weekend strongly defended Hegseth. “Secretary Hegseth said he did not order the death of those individuals,” Trump stated. He continued, “And I believe him.” Leavitt noted Hegseth had conversed with members of Congress who may have voiced some concerns about the allegations over the past few days. General Dan Caine, the head of the military's top officers, also spoke over the weekend with the two Republican and two Democratic lawmakers leading the Senate and House armed services committees. He reiterated “his faith in the experienced officers at every echelon”, Caine’s spokesperson said in a statement. The release further noted that the conversation focused on “discussing the purpose and lawfulness of missions to disrupt illicit trafficking networks which endanger the security and stability of the Americas”. Congressional Figures Respond and Pledge Investigation The Senate majority leader, John Thune, on Monday broadly supported the missions, echoing the White House line that they were essential to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the US. Thune said the panels in Congress would investigate what occurred. “I don’t think you want to draw any judgments or deductions until you have all the facts,” he said of the 2 September strike. “We’ll see where they point.” After the news article, Hegseth wrote on Friday that “misleading reporting is producing more fabricated, provocative, and disparaging coverage to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to defend the homeland”. “Our ongoing missions in the Caribbean are legal under both American and global statutes, with all actions in accordance with the rules of war – and approved by the most qualified legal advisors, throughout the military hierarchy,” Hegseth wrote. The top Senate Democrat, Chuck Schumer, called Hegseth a “national embarrassment” over his reaction to critics. Schumer demanded that Hegseth make public the video of the attack and appear under oath about what happened. The GOP lawmaker for Mississippi, Roger Wicker, the chair of the Senate military panel, pledged that his panel’s investigation would be “done by the numbers”. “We’ll find out the ground truth,” he added, stating that the implications of the report were “serious charges”. The 2 September strike was part of a sequence carried out by the American armed forces in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean as Trump has directed the buildup of a fleet of warships near the Venezuelan coast, including the biggest US carrier. More than eighty individuals were fatally wounded in the series of attacks.
A high-ranking American naval officer is scheduled to deliver a classified briefing to congressional members overseeing the armed forces this week, as investigators examine a US attack on a vessel in the Caribbean Sea. The incident, which allegedly targeted a boat transporting drugs, reportedly included a follow-up engagement that killed any survivors. Administration Justifies Strikes as Self-Defense The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, on the start of the week asserted that the second strike was carried out “in self-defence” and in accordance with laws governing armed conflict. Bipartisan scrutiny has mounted over a account that Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth gave a spoken command in September to attack the boat. Democratic lawmakers have argued the claims, first reported last week, could constitute a war crime, and GOP members have also expressed their apprehensions about the legality of the strike on 2 September. The Congressional armed services committees have opened inquiries into the recent US armed engagements on vessels in the Caribbean region and Pacific waters. “Secretary Hegseth authorised Adm [Frank M] Bradley to execute these kinetic strikes,” stated Leavitt. “Adm Bradley acted well within his mandate and the legal framework, directing the operation to guarantee the boat was destroyed and the danger to the United States of America was eliminated.” In her comments to reporters, Leavitt did not challenge the account that there were survivors after the first strike. Her justification came following ex-President Donald Trump a day earlier said he “wouldn’t have wanted that – not a second strike” when asked about the event. Mounting Legislative Concern and Internal Support Late on Monday, Hegseth posted: “Adm Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a consummate professional, and has my full and complete backing. I support him and the combat decisions he has made – on the September 2nd operation and all others since.” A thirty days following the engagement, Bradley was elevated from commander of Joint Special Operations Command to commander of USSOCOM. Concern over the government’s armed actions against alleged drug-smuggling vessels has been building in the legislature, but details of this subsequent attack stunned many legislators from across the aisle and sparked serious questions about the lawfulness of the operations and the broader policy in the region, particularly toward Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. The congressional members said they did not know whether last week’s report was accurate, and some Republicans were doubtful. Nevertheless, they stated the reported targeting of survivors of an initial rocket attack presented grave issues and merited additional investigation. White House and Military Officials Reiterate Stance The administration commented after the commander-in-chief on the weekend strongly defended Hegseth. “Secretary Hegseth said he did not order the death of those individuals,” Trump stated. He continued, “And I believe him.” Leavitt noted Hegseth had conversed with members of Congress who may have voiced some concerns about the allegations over the past few days. General Dan Caine, the head of the military's top officers, also spoke over the weekend with the two Republican and two Democratic lawmakers leading the Senate and House armed services committees. He reiterated “his faith in the experienced officers at every echelon”, Caine’s spokesperson said in a statement. The release further noted that the conversation focused on “discussing the purpose and lawfulness of missions to disrupt illicit trafficking networks which endanger the security and stability of the Americas”. Congressional Figures Respond and Pledge Investigation The Senate majority leader, John Thune, on Monday broadly supported the missions, echoing the White House line that they were essential to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the US. Thune said the panels in Congress would investigate what occurred. “I don’t think you want to draw any judgments or deductions until you have all the facts,” he said of the 2 September strike. “We’ll see where they point.” After the news article, Hegseth wrote on Friday that “misleading reporting is producing more fabricated, provocative, and disparaging coverage to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to defend the homeland”. “Our ongoing missions in the Caribbean are legal under both American and global statutes, with all actions in accordance with the rules of war – and approved by the most qualified legal advisors, throughout the military hierarchy,” Hegseth wrote. The top Senate Democrat, Chuck Schumer, called Hegseth a “national embarrassment” over his reaction to critics. Schumer demanded that Hegseth make public the video of the attack and appear under oath about what happened. The GOP lawmaker for Mississippi, Roger Wicker, the chair of the Senate military panel, pledged that his panel’s investigation would be “done by the numbers”. “We’ll find out the ground truth,” he added, stating that the implications of the report were “serious charges”. The 2 September strike was part of a sequence carried out by the American armed forces in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean as Trump has directed the buildup of a fleet of warships near the Venezuelan coast, including the biggest US carrier. More than eighty individuals were fatally wounded in the series of attacks.