President Donald Trump announced Saturday that two survivors from a military strike on a drug-carrying submarine will be sent to Ecuador and Colombia for prosecution.
The U.S. military destroyed the vessel Thursday as it traveled toward American waters on a known narcotrafficking route. Trump said on Truth Social that intelligence confirmed the submarine carried fentanyl and other illegal drugs.
“It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE that was navigating towards the United States,” Trump wrote. “U.S. Intelligence confirmed this vessel was loaded up with mostly Fentanyl, and other illegal narcotics.”
Two of the four people aboard were killed in the strike. Trump called all four “known narcoterrorists.” No U.S. forces were injured. (RELATED: Trump Admin Strikes Another ‘Narcoterrorist’ Drug Boat)
The president claimed the submarine’s cargo could have killed at least 25,000 Americans if it reached shore. The surviving suspects will face detention and prosecution in their home countries.
“Under my watch, the United States of America will not tolerate narcoterrorists trafficking illegal drugs, by land or by sea,” Trump said.
The strike was the sixth such attack since early September. U.S. military action against vessels in the region has killed at least 29 people, according to NPR.
Trump has justified the strikes by declaring an “armed conflict” with drug cartels. He relies on the same legal authority the Bush administration used after the Sept. 11 attacks when it declared a war on terrorism.
The repatriation sidesteps questions about what legal status the survivors would have in the U.S. justice system.
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