US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that 14 more people were killed in three targeted strikes against vessels allegedly involved in drug trafficking.

Hegseth said, following instructions from president Donald Trump, the "Department of War" carried out three lethal kinetic strikes on four vessels operated by alledged Designated Terrorist Organisations (DTOs) that were trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific on October 27.

“The four vessels were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics,” the post said.