U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has denied witnessing a reported follow-up military strike in the Caribbean that allegedly targeted survivors of an initial operation earlier this year, attributing the confusion to "the fog of war." The remarks come amid bipartisan congressional inquiries into the September 2 incident, which marked the first known U.S. boat strike in Latin American international waters.
According to a Washington Post report published last week, Hegseth issued a verbal order to "kill everybody" aboard suspected drug vessels prior to the September strike. Two survivors clinging to a burning boat were reportedly killed in a subsequent attack. Hegseth, speaking at the White House on Tuesday, acknowledged viewing the initial strike live but stated he "did not personally see survivors" due to fire and smoke obscuring visibility.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters he "didn't know about the second strike," while praising the military official overseeing the operation. Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson dismissed the allegations as "totally fabricated," emphasizing that decisions were made under established protocols to neutralize threats.
Since early September, the Pentagon has conducted over 20 strikes on suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, resulting in more than 80 fatalities. Republican-led House and Senate armed services committees announced bipartisan investigations into the controversial incident over the weekend, signaling heightened scrutiny of U.S. military operations in the region.
