The U.S. military has conducted another strike against a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Thursday (June 18, 2026), immediately killing two people and leaving six survivors amid an ongoing campaign against alleged traffickers in Latin America.

The latest attack — which now numbers more than 60 — brings the number of people who have been killed in boat strikes by the U.S. military to more than 210 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls “narcoterrorists” in early September.

It is unclear if the survivors of this strike, or the one conducted on June 16, which left two survivors, were rescued. However, in both cases, U.S. Central Command said that they notified the U.S. Coast Guard. The Pentagon did not immediately answer questions about the out. As with most of the military’s statements on strikes in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, U.S. Southern Command said it targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs.

A black and white video posted on X showed a boat speeding through the water before being struck by a visible projectile and then bursting into flames.

U.S. President Donald Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States and fatal overdoses claiming American lives. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists”.

Critics of the strikes have questioned the overall legality as well as their effectiveness. Part of the argument has been that the fentanyl behind many fatal U.S. drug overdoses is typically trafficked over land from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India.

On Thursday (June 18, 2026), U.S. lawmakers demanded that the Pentagon release “unedited video” of the very first strike that the military conducted after reports emerged that the U.S. chose to conduct a follow-up strike on survivors of its initial attack.

Two men on the boat initially survived the attack that killed nine others, and they were clinging to the wreckage when the vessel was struck again, killing them. The White House confirmed the follow-up strike, insisting it was done “in self-defence” to ensure the boat was destroyed and in accordance with the laws of armed conflict.

But some legal scholars said a second strike killing survivors would have been illegal under any circumstance, armed conflict or not.

The Pentagon’s watchdog said in May that it planned to look into whether the U.S. military followed an established targeting framework when carrying out the strikes.

However, the evaluation is focussed specifically on what’s known as the six-phase Joint Targeting Cycle and not on the legality of the strikes, the inspector general’s office said.

The U.S. military kills two men, attacking a boat accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean as the Trump administration wages a months-long campaign against alleged traffickers in Latin America.

Since the administration began targeting ‘narcoterrorists’ in early September, the U.S. military has killed at least 207 people in boat strikes.

U.S. Southern Command said it targeted the alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs.

A video posted on X showed a boat speeding through the water before bursting into flames.

President Donald Trump has said the U.S. is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the United States and fatal overdoses claiming American lives. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists.”

Critics have raised concerns regarding the legality of these boat strikes because fentanyl continues to be the reason behind many fatal overdoses, which is typically trafficked to the U.S. over land from Mexico, where it is produced with chemicals imported from China and India.

The strikes have drawn intense scrutiny from military legal scholars and lawmakers.

Two men almost survived the initial attack which killed nine others as they were clinging to the wreckage, but the vessel was struck again, killing them.

The White House confirmed the follow-up strike as “in self-defense” in armed conflict; however, legal scholars said second-strike killing survivors would have been illegal under any circumstance, armed conflict or not.

The Pentagon’s watchdog, which is the Department of Defence Office of Inspector General, said in May that it plans to look into whether the US military followed an established targeting framework when carrying out the strikes.

However, the evaluation is focused specifically on what’s known as the six-phase Joint Targeting Cycle and not on the legality of the strikes, the inspector general’s office said.

The U.S. ​military ⁠said on Friday (May 29, 2026) that it struck ‌a vessel in the ‌eastern Pacific, ‌killing ⁠three men, ⁠in the latest such incident over ​the last ‌few months.

President Donald Trump’s administration has touted ‌its success at ​taking out suspected drug ⁠trafficking vessels in the eastern ‌Pacific and the Caribbean.

U.S. Southern Command said in a post ‌on X that ​the vessel was “engaged in narco-trafficking ⁠operations.”

Reuters could not ⁠immediately verify the ‌information.