By Atoyebi Nike
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that the United States destroyed a dock area used by alleged drug-smuggling boats operating from Venezuela, escalating pressure on President Nicolás Maduro.
Speaking to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida while hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said the strike targeted a facility where boats were loaded with drugs.
“There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs,” Trump said. “We hit all the boats, and now we hit the area. That facility is no longer around.”
Trump declined to confirm whether the operation was carried out by the U.S. military or the CIA or to disclose the exact location, saying only that it occurred “along the shore.”
U.S. media outlets, including CNN and The New York Times, cited sources saying the CIA conducted a drone strike on a port facility believed to be linked to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. Reports said no casualties were recorded, as the area was empty at the time of the strike.
The president revealed further details after referencing the operation during a radio interview last week, where he said the U.S. had “knocked out” a major drug facility used by traffickers.
Trump has repeatedly accused Maduro of overseeing drug trafficking networks and has intensified economic and diplomatic pressure on his government, including an oil tanker blockade.
The strike comes amid a broader U.S. maritime campaign targeting suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. Since September, U.S. forces have carried out multiple strikes at sea, killing at least 107 people, according to military statements.
Human rights groups and international law experts have questioned the legality of the operations, describing them as potential extrajudicial killings, an allegation Washington has rejected.
