Accusations Mount: Defense Secretary Hegseth Faces War Crimes Claims Over Venezuelan Boat Strikes

In a escalating controversy that threatens to redefine U.S. military ethics, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—confirmed earlier this year in a razor-thin 51-50 Senate vote with Vice President JD Vance breaking the tie—stands accused of authorizing war crimes through a series of lethal strikes on suspected “narco boats” off Venezuela’s coast. The operations, which have claimed at least 83 lives since September, have ignited bipartisan outrage in Congress, with lawmakers and legal experts questioning not only the legality but the very premise of targeting civilian vessels far from American shores. As reports detail a chilling “kill everybody” directive allegedly issued by Hegseth, the strikes raise profound concerns about due process, international law, and the true motivations behind America’s aggressive pivot toward Latin America.

The flashpoint is a September 2 attack in the Caribbean Sea, the first in a Trump administration campaign to interdict drug smuggling by treating suspects as “narco-terrorists” in a de facto war. According to a Washington Post investigation, U.S. Special Forces launched an initial missile strike on a Venezuelan-flagged vessel, killing nine of 11 aboard. Two survivors clung to wreckage in the water—unarmed and clearly hors de combat under international humanitarian law—when a second strike, ordered by Navy Adm. Frank M. Bradley, finished them off. Sources claim Bradley acted to fulfill Hegseth’s spoken order: “kill everybody.” The White House has confirmed the double-tap but denies Hegseth’s direct involvement in the survivor killings, insisting the broader campaign is “lawful under both U.S. and international law.” Hegseth himself dismissed the reports as “fake news” on X, posting a meme of a children’s book turtle firing on boats to mock critics.