U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) on Wednesday announced that U.S. forces carried out a lethal kinetic strike against a drug trafficking vessel in the Caribbean, killing three narco-terrorists.
The military operation was conducted by Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere (JTF-WHEM), a new purpose-built joint task forced activated in August. JTF-WHEM’s goal is to coordinate U.S. military operations and regional security efforts with regional allies across the Western Hemisphere.
SOUTHCOM detailed that the go-fast vessel struck on Wednesday was operating in established narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean. SOUTHCOM shared unclassified footage of the strike on its website and on social media.
“Confirmed intelligence revealed the vessel’s active involvement in narco-trafficking,” SOUTHCOM explained. “The operation killed three narco-terrorists.”
SOUTHCOM has described Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere as the successor to Operation Southern Spear, a military operation launched by the U.S. Department of War and Secretary Pete Hegseth in September 2025.
In August, SOUTHCOM explained that JTF-WHEM builds upon the success of Southern Spear in the fight against narco-terrorism and integrates America’s military capabilities with the Latin American members of the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (A3C), also known as the “Shield of the Americas.”
Earlier this week, SOUTHCOM announced that U.S. forces interdicted and destroyed a “floating refueling station” supporting illicit drug trafficking operations at sea in the Eastern Pacific. Intelligence confirmed that Ecuador’s deadly narco-terrorist group Los Choneros was involved in the platform’s illicit operations. A separate floating refueling station operated by Los Choneros was also struck by SOUTHCOM earlier this month in an operation carried out in coordination and collaboration with the government of Ecuador.
The United States designated Los Choneros as a Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT) in September 2025 alongside the equally dangerous Ecuadorian gang Los Lobos. This week, U.S. Secretary Marco Rubio announced that another Ecuadorian gang, Los Tiguerones, has also been designated by the U.S. as an FTO and SDGT.
U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Kevin Jarrard is at the head of the new Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere. Jarrad recently led the United States military’s support efforts to the State Department’s disaster relief operations in Venezuela following the devastating June 24 double earthquake.
Over 60 strikes against drug trafficking vessels operating in Caribbean and Eastern Pacific waters have taken place over the past year since Southern Spear’s initial launch.
“When I ordered the establishment of Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere, it was precisely for this purpose: to accelerate, synchronize, and execute lethal actions against these destabilizing narco-terrorist networks. We are committed to imposing total systemic friction on narco-terrorists — disrupting their operations, dismantling their leadership, and eliminating cartel terror across the region,” SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan said in August.
“Let me be clear: we will not permit narco-terrorists to operate with impunity in the Western Hemisphere, nor will we allow their deadly poison to reach American communities. This operation is a powerful demonstration of our lethal precision, overwhelming capability, and absolute resolve to protect the U.S. homeland,” he continued.
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