WASHINGTON — The White House confirmed Monday that the U.S. did launch a second strike on an alleged drug boat from Venezuela in early September and that it was ordered by Adm. Frank M. Bradley, who at the time headed the Joint Special Operations Command.
The follow-up strike killed the survivors of an initial U.S. strike on the vessel, which the Trump administration has said originated from Venezuela. Some lawmakers and legal experts say that second attack could constitute a war crime.
“With respect to the strikes in question on Sept. 2, Secretary Hegseth authorized Adm. Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement during Monday’s briefing.
“Adm. Bradley worked well within his authority and the law directing the engagement to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated,” she added.
U.S. Special Operations Command, which Bradley now leads as commander, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Washington Post reported that Bradley had ordered the second strike, and that he was complying with an order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to “kill everybody.” NBC News has not confirmed the detail about Hegseth.
One U.S. official and a source familiar with the Pentagon’s actions on Sept. 2 told NBC News recently that the first of the two strikes conducted that day left at least two survivors, with the subsequent strike killing them.
On Sunday, President Donald Trump told reporters that Hegseth didn’t order the second strike.
“He said he didn’t do it,” said Trump, who also said he didn’t know if the second strike even happened. The president said he “wouldn’t have wanted” it, adding that “Pete said he did not want them.” Asked again if there was no second strike, Trump said: “I don’t know. I’m going to find out about it, but Pete said he did not order the death of those two men.”
Asked Monday what law the U.S. military relied on to justify the second strike, Leavitt said: “The strike conducted on Sept. 2 was conducted in self-defense to protect Americans in vital United States interests. The strike was conducted in international waters and in accordance with the law of armed conflict.”
She also confirmed that Trump will be meeting with his national security team — which includes Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller — in the Oval Office later Monday.
Leavitt’s comments come amid widespread criticism and bipartisan investigations in the House and Senate into the second boat strike. The leaders of the Senate Armed Services Committee — chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and ranking member Jack Reed, D-R.I. — said in a statement Friday that they will be “conducting vigorous oversight to determine the facts related to these circumstances.” Similarly, the leaders of the House Armed Services Committee — chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., and ranking member Adam Smith, D-Wash. — said they were taking “seriously the reports of follow-on strikes on boats alleged to be ferrying narcotics in the SOUTHCOM region and are taking bipartisan action to gather a full accounting of the operation in question.”
Hegseth has defended the numerous U.S. strikes in the Caribbean, saying in a post on X Friday after The Washington Post article was published that “these highly effective strikes are specifically intended to be ‘lethal, kinetic strikes.'”
“Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict — and approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command,” he wrote.
Hegseth received backlash on social media after he posted on his personal X account what appeared to be an AI-generated image of the children’s book character Franklin, with the title, “Franklin targets Narco Terrorists.” It shows Franklin, a turtle, standing on the edge of a helicopter aiming a machine gun at boats allegedly carrying drugs.
The strikes in the Caribbean are part of an escalating pressure campaign the Trump administration is waging against Venezuela. Trump declared in a Truth Social post Saturday that Venezuela’s airspace should be considered “closed,” which came as the U.S. is considering military action against the South American nation.