President Donald Trump on Monday said US forces had killed three people in another strike on an alleged drug-trafficking boat in the Caribbean.
It is the second such attack since the Pentagon began attacking boats it claims were carrying US-bound drugs this month.
US forces “conducted a second kinetic strike against positively identified, extraordinarily violent drug-trafficking cartels and narco-terrorists” in the US Southern Command’s area of responsibility, Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“The strike occurred while these confirmed narco-terrorists from Venezuela were in international waters transporting illegal narcotics.”
The post included a link to a video that showed a vessel rolling in the waves in unidentified waters. After several seconds it is consumed by a fireball.
On September 2, Mr Trump said 11 “terrorists” were killed in a US attack on a boat carrying drugs from Venezuela. The country's President Nicolas Maduro has vowed to defend against Washington's "aggression".
The Trump administration has denied accusations that such strikes amount to extrajudicial killings. Tension between longtime foes the US and Venezuela reached new heights in recent weeks after Mr Trump sent eight warships to waters near Venezuela to put pressure on Mr Maduro.
Mr Trump has also sent 10 F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico as part of his war on drug cartels.
