Admiral who ordered September boat strike to tell lawmakers survivors were trying to finish drug run: report
The Navy admiral who kicked off the missile attack on a suspected drug‑running vessel in the Caribbean on Sept. 2 will speak with House and Senate leaders later Thursday. He will explain that he believed the survivors of the first strike were still on a deadly mission, which prompted him to order follow‑up attacks.
Adm. Frank Bradley, who leads US Special Operations Command, gave the final go‑ahead for the initial missile impact and several subsequent strikes that killed 11 people. The decision followed a directive from War Secretary Pete Hegseth to destroy the boat and its narcotics load.
The Wall Street Journal, citing three Pentagon officials, reported that surveillance footage didn’t show the two survivors until an hour after the first strike—after Hegseth reportedly stopped watching the feed. Bradley then had to decide whether the pair would still count as combatants for further attacks or be treated as “out of the fight” and rescued.
According to the officials who spoke to the Journal, Bradley ordered the extra strikes after spotting other suspected drug boats nearby and learning that the survivors were likely trying to communicate with them by radio.
The Sept. 2 mission has been contentious. On Nov. 28, the Washington Post revealed the strikes against survivors, and the New York Times followed up on Tuesday with a report that Hegseth’s initial order didn’t clarify what should happen if anyone survived the first hit.
Bradley will give his account in a closed‑door briefing to members of the GOP‑led House and Senate Armed Services Committees, which are investigating the operation. Meanwhile, President Trump said on Wednesday that he would support releasing the full surveillance video of the Sept. 2 strike, of which only snippets have been made public.
“Whatever they have, we will certainly release,” Trump said, standing by the War Department amid accusations that the strikes could amount to a war crime. Since Sept. 2, the US military has conducted 21 operations against suspected South American drug smugglers in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, killing more than 80 people—and the White House has hinted at further strikes. “You will find that this is war,” the president told reporters, “they were killing our people … we know where they are, we know where they manufacture it, we know where they put it all together. I think you will see it very soon on land.”
Stay informed on all the latest news, real-time breaking news updates, and follow all the important headlines in world News on Latest NewsX. Follow us on social media Facebook, Twitter(X), Gettr and subscribe our Youtube Channel.
