Suspected drug-smuggling vessel moments before being attacked by US forces [Screenshot from US Southern Command's X (formerly Twitter) post]

The US military has again attacked a vessel suspected of smuggling drugs in the Eastern Pacific, killing three people, the US Southern Command announced on Tuesday.

The Southern Command stated via X that the attack, carried out on Tuesday, targeted a vessel traveling along an established smuggling route and released a 28-second video of the incident.

This US military strike follows a similar attack on a vessel in the Caribbean on Monday, which resulted in two deaths.

Since September of last year, the Trump administration has been conducting airstrikes on suspected drug-smuggling vessels under the guise of interdicting 'drug terrorism' in the waters of Central and South America. To date, at least 191 fatalities have been recorded.

President Trump has asserted that the United States is in a state of 'armed conflict' with South American drug cartels and that the use of military force is unavoidable to address the influx of drugs and the problem of drug overdoses that claim American lives.

The series of attacks on drug-carrying vessels have occurred after Secretary of State Marco Rubio attended the 2026 Heads of Mission Conference held at Southern Command on Monday.

The conference was attended by Secretary Rubio, senior federal government officials, heads of diplomatic missions from embassies across the Southern Hemisphere, and leaders from the Department of War.

Attendees focused on advancing national security strategic objectives in the Western Hemisphere and discussed cooperation to counter drug terrorism and prevent adversaries from establishing a foothold in the region.

Currently, Southern Command is supporting 'Operation Southern Spear' under the command of the Department of War. Southern Command states that this operation supports President Trump's priority of disrupting illegal drug trafficking and protecting the homeland.

In other news, the Mexican Navy and the Air and Marine Operations (AMO) division of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced on Wednesday that they had jointly seized 904 kg of cocaine.

The Joint Interagency Task Force South stated via X on Wednesday, "With 21 partners, we are dismantling drug terror routes every day."

US NNP=Reporter Sung Ku Hong / Special Dispatch by this newspaper NNP info@newsandpost.com