Two killed in US strike on another alleged drug boat in Pacific as campaign’s death toll nears 200

Military claims boat targeted in second deadly attack this week was travelling along a known smuggling route

The US military attacked what it called a drug trafficking boat on Wednesday in the eastern Pacific, killing two men, officials said.

It was the second deadly attack in as many days in the Trump administration offensive that began last September and has now left almost 200 people dead. Rights groups say the attacks could amount to extrajudicial killings.

This latest attack targeted a boat that was engaged in drug trafficking and travelling along a known smuggling route, the US southern command claimed on X.

“Two male narco-terrorists were killed during this action,” it said in a statement.

The strike came after dozens of similar attacks in recent months and brought the death toll in the US campaign to at least 195, according to a tally by the AFP news agency.

In Tuesday’s attack two people survived and were stranded in the water, the southern command said, with the US Coast Guard alerted to launch a rescue operation.

The coast guard did not immediately respond to requests for information on this and other rescue efforts.

Grainy black-and-white video accompanying the newest post showed the boat before the strike, then a large explosion, and then flaming wreckage in the water.

The US military launched operation “Southern Spear” in early September with President Donald Trump insisting the US was effectively at war with drug cartels operating out of Latin America.

But his administration has not provided definitive evidence that the vessels it has been striking are involved in drug trafficking.

Legal experts and rights groups say the strikes could amount to extrajudicial killings because they have apparently targeted civilians who do not pose an immediate threat to the US.