Two members of a submarine crew have been detained after President Donald Trump's latest Caribbean boat strike, making this the first time that anyone has survived the president's bombing campaign against suspected drug vessels.
The two survivors were rescued by helicopter and are being detained on an American ship, ABC News reported.
Speaking with reporters at the White House on Friday, Trump said that a drug-carrying submarine had been taken out, and no "innocent" lives were lost. This is now the sixth boat strike since September.
Latin American drug lords commonly use custom-designed submarines, or "narco-subs," to transport large shipments of cocaine and other illicit drugs over sea.
"We attacked a submarine," Trump said, saying the vessel was designed to carry "massive amounts" of drugs. "Just so you understand. This was not an innocent group of people,” he said. “I don’t know too many people that have submarines. That was an attack on a drug-carrying, loaded-up submarine.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said more details would be released later Friday and that the people on board were “terrorists.”
Trump has taken an aggressive military posture in the Americas in order to stop the flow of deadly drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border.
Democrats in Congress have attempted to limit Trump's war powers as critics accuse him of conducting illegal extrajudicial killings of potentially innocent people.
Meanwhile, the military commander who oversees operations in Latin America is stepping down. Admiral Alvin Holsey is reportedly retiring at the end of the year.
The Pentagon dismissed a New York Times report that said Holsey voiced concerns about the boat strikes. “This is a total lie. Never happened. There was no hesitation or concerns about this mission,” said Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell.
Trump's Caribbean campaign is part of a show of force against Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, whom Trump accuses of covertly funneling deadly drugs to the United States.
The presisdent's buildup in Latin America has brought thousands of troops to the region, along with guided missile destroyers, F-35 fighter jets, and a nuclear submarine.
This week, Trump confirmed that he is considering direct strikes on land as he authorizes the CIA to conduct operations inside Venezuela, fueling speculation of a plan to topple Maduro.
"We are certainly looking at land now because we’ve got the sea under control,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
“A lot of Venezuelan drugs come in through the sea. So you get to see that, but we’re going to stop them by land also," he added.
