US military says strike on vessel in Eastern Pacific kills three

The US military said on Wednesday it struck a vessel in the Eastern Pacific, killing three people, in the Trump administration's latest strikes that have been condemned by human rights advocates.

The US Southern Command alleged that the vessel was operated by "Designated Terrorist Organizations" that it did not identify.

It added that no US military forces were harmed. It described those killed as "male narco-terrorists," without offering details.

"Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," the US Southern Command said on X.

On April 15, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations. Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known… pic.twitter.com/EaGDMHmpan

— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) April 16, 2026

The strike comes a day after the US military said that another of its strikes in the Eastern Pacific killed four people while a separate strike on Monday in the region had killed two.

President Donald Trump's administration has been striking vessels that it accuses of transporting narcotics.

The US military's strikes on such vessels have killed more than 170 people since September.

Experts and human rights advocates, both in the US and globally, have questioned the legality of the strikes.

Human Rights Watch has said the strikes amount to "unlawful extrajudicial killings," while the American Civil Liberties Union has cast the assertions by the Trump administration against those it targets as "unsubstantiated, fear-mongering claims."