‘Kill them’: Trump says no Congress nod needed to attack ‘narco-terrorists’

US president says strikes connected onshore to travel US subject attacks connected suspected cause smuggling vessels successful the Caribbean, Pacific Ocean.

President Donald Trump has said United States attacks connected alleged ‘narco-terrorists’ bash not request a declaration of war, and portion Congress volition beryllium briefed connected operations, the caller spate of bombings of vessels successful the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean volition beryllium followed by strikes connected land.

“Well, I don’t deliberation we’re going to needfully inquire for a declaration of war,” Trump told reporters astatine the White House connected Thursday.

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“I deliberation we’re conscionable going to termination radical that are bringing drugs into our country. OK? We’re going to termination them,” Trump said.

“Now they [drugs] are coming successful by onshore … you know, the onshore is going to beryllium next,” the US president added, echoing akin threats helium has made successful caller weeks to widen his administration’s attacks to the territories of countries Washington accuses of enabling cause cartels to smuggle narcotics to the US.

So far, the US subject has carried retired attacks connected astatine slightest 9 vessels successful the Caribbean and Pacific since aboriginal September, killing astatine slightest 37 people successful what Washington has branded a subject cognition against “narco-terrorists” – without providing immoderate grounds to enactment its allegations of criminality.

Washington’s intensifying cognition against alleged Latin American cause cartels has seen the deployment of US naval ships, F-35 combatant jets, a atomic submarine and thousands of troops to the Caribbean region.

The US has besides escalated rhetoric against the leaders of Venezuela and Colombia, accusing President Nicolas Maduro successful Caracas and Gustavo Petro successful Bogota of engagement successful cause trafficking.

Venezuela has accused the US of launching its anti-cartel run arsenic portion of a crippled to overthrow President Maduro, who said connected Wednesday that his equipped forces person 5,000 Russian surface-to-air missiles to antagonistic immoderate US subject involution successful his country.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has warned the US against immoderate subject attacks connected his state arsenic US forces deploy successful waters disconnected Venezuela’s seashore [File: Jesus Vargas/AP Photo]

The AFP quality bureau reported that astatine slightest 1 US B-1B bomber flew implicit the Caribbean Sea disconnected the seashore of Venezuela connected Wednesday, according to formation tracking data, the 2nd specified amusement of airpower by the US successful a week.

Data from tracking website Flightradar24 showed a B-1B bomber flying towards the Venezuelan seashore connected Wednesday day earlier making a U-turn and heading north, aft which it disappeared from view.

Asked during a White House lawsuit astir the reported B-1Bs adjacent Venezuela, Trump responded that “it’s false”, earlier adding that the US is “not blessed with Venezuela for a batch of reasons”.

Last week, US-based B-52 bombers circled disconnected Venezuela’s seashore for respective hours, with the subject describing the ngo arsenic a objection of Washington’s committedness “to proactively deter adversary threats, heighten unit training, and guarantee the planetary unit readiness indispensable to respond to immoderate contingency oregon challenge.”

Two U.S. Air Force B-1B “Lancer” Long-Range Heavy Bombers, (BART21) and (BART22), person appeared present connected formation radar implicit the Southern Caribbean, astir 50 miles disconnected the seashore of Venezuela. The bombers look to beryllium conducting onslaught rehearsals, apt successful mentation for future… pic.twitter.com/Uh0zU5y7bM

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) October 23, 2025

‘All planetary instrumentality is broken’

Trump besides said connected Thursday that “it should present beryllium wide to the full world” that cause cartels – respective of which the US has designated arsenic “foreign violent organisations” – are the “ISIS [ISIL] of the Western Hemisphere”.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth besides drew comparisons betwixt the US’s alleged “war connected terror” and Trump’s increasing operations against Latin American cause gangs.

“Just arsenic Al Qaeda waged warfare connected our homeland, these cartels are waging warfare connected our borderline and our people,” Hegseth said successful a station connected societal media connected Wednesday, adding, “There volition beryllium nary refuge oregon forgiveness – lone justice.”

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum and Colombia’s president are among a chorus of voices criticising Washington’s attacks connected vessels successful planetary waters – suspected of smuggling drugs – arsenic a contravention of planetary law.

“Obviously, we bash not agree. There are planetary laws governing however operations indispensable beryllium carried retired erstwhile facing alleged amerciable cause oregon weapons proscription successful planetary waters. We person made this wide to the authorities of the United States,” Sheinbaum said connected Thursday.

Colombia’s Petro, who has engaged successful a nationalist warfare of words with Trump since being labelled a cause trafficker “thug” by the US president, said connected Thursday that the US was “carrying retired extrajudicial executions” that “violate planetary law”.

“Amnesty International opposes rocket bombings successful the Caribbean. All planetary instrumentality is breached successful the Caribbean,” Petro said successful a station connected societal media supra a quality study connected Trump’s attacks connected vessels successful the Caribbean, and which has present expanded to the Pacific.

Amnistía Internacional se opone a los bombardeos con misiles en el Caribe. Se rompe en el Caribe todo el derecho internacional.https://t.co/gWRkSYZkBU

— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) October 23, 2025