President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. military struck a drug-smuggling boat from Venezuela in the southern Caribbean, killing 11 alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang.
He called it a warning against trafficking drugs into the U.S. and shared a video of the vessel exploding, though its authenticity was questioned by Venezuelan officials, who suggested it may have been AI-generated.
Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro did not directly address the strike but accused the U.S. of targeting the country’s natural resources, while officials cast doubt on Washington’s claims about the gang’s ties to his government, the Associated Press has reported.
