Americas
2 killed, 1 survivor sought after latest strike on alleged drug boat
Stars and Stripes
February 10, 2026
Forces under Joint Task Force Southern Spear struck an alleged drug boat on Monday, killing two, U.S. Southern Command said in a news release Monday. (U.S. Southern Command)
Forces under Joint Task Force Southern Spear struck an alleged drug boat in the Eastern Pacific Ocean on Monday, killing two, U.S. Southern Command said in a news release.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes,” the release said, language it has used to detail past strikes.
The release said one alleged “narco-terrorist” survived the strike and was being sought by the Coast Guard for a search-and-rescue mission. Ten previous strike survivors have been presumed dead after such search and rescue operations failed to recover them.
Monday’s strike is the 38th of its kind and brings the total confirmed killed in the drug boat campaign to 130.
The campaign of strikes against alleged drug boats, which began in September 2025, has slowed in frequency. Monday’s strike was the second in a week and the third since since the U.S. conducted a large-scale operation in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, on Jan. 3 that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, who were then flown to New York to face federal drug trafficking charges. In contrast, the Pentagon struck more than dozen boats in December 2025.
SOUTHCOM’s statement came after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Navy forces seized a tanker in the Indian Ocean as part of a quarantine on sanctioned Venezuelan oil exports.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.