There is no U.S. law that explicitly authorizes the U.S. Navy to attack or sink ships at sea outside of a congressionally authorized war or valid self-defense situation, legal experts and Democratic lawmakers say.
The strikes began in September, but Trump administration discussions about them began soon after Trump moved back into the White House in January
Amid a buildup of U.S. military forces near Venezuela and strikes on alleged drug boats, President Donald Trump told U.S. troops on Thanksgiving that the military operation will soon include strikes on land.
“In recent weeks, you’ve been working to deter Venezuelan drug traffickers,“ Trump said during a call with military service members that alluded to the boat strikes, adding: „We’ll be starting to stop them by land also. The land is easier, but that’s going to start very soon.“
Venezuela‘s communications ministry, which handles all press inquiries for the government, did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Trump‘s post.
The U.S. Defense Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
During the formation of the Bolivarian Base Committee in the Caracas parish of La Pastora, he declared that „those who want to hand over Venezuela, its natural resources, and fascist extremism are encountering the unyielding fist of the organized people. They will not succeed against us.“
Rodríguez emphasized that the US has decided to declare war on the entire planet, „and Venezuela must be prepared to defend our sovereignty. Who is going to come and give us orders from another country? Nobody, nobody gives us orders. The only one is the Venezuelan people, who are well organized.“
As the USS Gerald R. Ford streams into the US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of responsibility, bringing with it 4000 US sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft, Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro ordered its military operations be amped up within the coming hours to confront “imperial threats.”
A release from Venezuelan Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez earlier today announced that a higher phase of “Independencia 200” operations- the country’s national defence and mobilisation framework- will be in effect from 4.p.m. until tomorrow.
MILITARY COMMANDERS have devised three specific courses of action to be taken in the event of any land strikes involving US forces and neighbouring Venezuela.
This follows a mandatory call-out of thousands of active soldiers, sailors and other personnel on October 31 to report for duty by 6 pm and a subsequent lockdown of all military installations.
(…)
The combination of a motion to extend the state of emergency for three months being debated in Parliament, media reports of an imminent strike to Venezuela, sparked a wave of anxiety in some parts of the country with some schools ending earlier and private businesses shutting their doors.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar later called for calm, vowing to keep the public informed of any major developments.
On October 31, Persad-Bissessar said she was unaware of reports that TT Defence Force (TTDF) personnel had been ordered to immediately return to base. She added she would find out and repeated her statement for people to remain calm in the face of reports which claimed US military strikes against targets in Venezuela were imminent.
Panday said, „The concern is that the head of the NSC should at least be aware of why the Defence Force was placed on high alert.“
She added if Persad-Bissessar genuinely did not know, „that raises serious questions about communication and coordination at the highest level of government, especially in a time of regional tension.“
The mobilization began at 4:00 a.m. in the states of Zulia, Falcón, Carabobo, Aragua, Miranda, La Guaira, Anzoátegui, Sucre, and Nueva Esparta—that is, along the entire Venezuelan coast.
They activated 105mm towed artillery pieces, ZU-23 systems (towed twin anti-aircraft automatic cannon) and Igla-S anti-aircraft missiles, as well as VN1 amphibious armored vehicles, among other equipment.
In a secret assessment in April, U.S. intelligence agencies said that Maduro’s government “probably does not have a policy of cooperating with TDA and is not directing TDA movement to and operations in the United States.” Rather, the assessment said, the Venezuelan regime, while sometimes tolerating the gang’s activities inside Venezuela, largely views it as a potential security threat.
The assessment contradicted Trump’s claim that Maduro controls the group, a rationale he used in invoking the Alien Enemies Act as justification to deport alleged gang members without due process.
he group of over 365 reservists say the assault puts the lives of Israeli hostages at risk while also ‚killing, maiming and starving‘ Gazan civilians.
Israel has begun mobilising at least 60,000 reservists as part of its planned offensive in Gaza City, and extending the service of an additional 20,000.
„The decision to conquer Gaza will place the hostages, soldiers, and civilians in jeopardy. It is being issued by a messianic government that lacks public legitimacy and is solely concerned with its own political survival,“ says one reserve officer who has already served hundreds of days.
(August 20, 2025)
President Nicolás Maduro announced on Monday, August 18, that he is activating “over 4.5 million militia members across the entire national territory” of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in response to the US deployment of three Navy guided-missile destroyers and 4,000 military personnel to the Caribbean. The White House has described the deployment as an anti-drug trafficking operation in the region, while some analysts have called it a new threat against Venezuela – the country with the largest oil reserves in the world.
The US military deployment comes after Washington raised its bounty on the Venezuelan president from USD 25 million to USD 50 million, alleging links to drug cartels.
Washington has accused Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of leading a drug cartel and has doubled the bounty for his capture to $50 million.
The U.S. has, however, made no public threat to invade Venezuela.
Caracas announced on Monday the deployment of 15,000 security forces to the Colombian border for anti-drug trafficking operations.
A day later, Venezuela announced that it would patrol its territorial waters with drones and navy ships.
Israel‘s defence minister has approved a plan for the conquest of Gaza City and authorised the call-up of around 60,000 reservists to carry it out, his ministry confirmed on Wednesday.
Section 8
The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;
To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;
To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;
To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;
To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;
To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;
To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
In the House, a Democrat and a Republican teamed up on Tuesday to introduce a resolution that would require congressional approval before U.S. troops could engage in offensive attacks against Iran. The measure by Representatives Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, and Thomas Massie, Republican of Kentucky, underscored a view held by many in Congress that Mr. Trump should not be able to decide on his own whether the United States wades deeper into the conflict. Thirteen additional Democrats signed on to the resolution, but no Republicans so far were supporting the effort.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday the U.S. knows where Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is hiding during the Israel-Iran conflict but doesn’t want him killed “for now.”
Trump urged, in a social media posting, Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” as the five-day conflict continues to escalate.
The IDF wasn’t more specific on what fell. A military spokesman for the Houthis said the group had fired a ballistic missile, and warned airlines against flying into Ben Gurion.
Most of the missiles launched by Houthis from Yemen at Israel have been successfully intercepted, including one on Saturday and two on Friday.
In recent weeks, the United States has positioned THAAD anti-ballistic missile defence systems in Israel, bolstering the existing Iron Dome system.
It appears that still was not enough to stop the missile getting through.
The attack on Ben-Gurion International Airport came hours before Israeli Cabinet ministers were set to vote on whether to intensify military operations in Gaza. The army began calling up thousands of reserves in anticipation of a wider operation, officials said.
Israel’s army confirmed this was the first time a missile struck the airport grounds since the war began, though fragments of missiles or interceptors have struck nearby.
Seit gut zwei Monaten lässt Israel keine Hilfslieferungen mehr in das abgeriegelte Gebiet, in dem rund zwei Millionen Palästinenser leben.
Israel hatte Mitte März nach einer knapp zweimonatigen Waffenruhe seine Luftangriffe im Gazastreifen wieder aufgenommen. Die israelische Armee startete zudem eine neue Bodenoffensive.
(May 3, 2025)
Israel’s public broadcaster, Kan 11, reported that Zamir’s plan included evacuating Palestinian civilians from northern and central Gaza ahead of expanded operations in those areas, mirroring tactics used earlier this year in southern Gaza’s Rafah.
Citing unnamed officials, Kan 11 said Netanyahu’s Security Cabinet was expected to approve the plan Sunday.
The incoming administration will sign an executive order to designate drug cartels and other criminal organizations, including the U.S.-El Salvadoran-based MS-13 and Venezuela‘s Tren de Aragua, as foreign terrorist organizations or specifically designated global terrorists (SDGT).
An incoming White House official said Monday that the order will direct authorities to specifically remove members of Tren de Agua from the United States. And, citing the Alien Enemies Act enacted more than two centuries ago, the official said Tren de Agua has become an „irregular armed force of Venezuela‘s government conducting a predatory incursion and invasion into the United States.“
Trump also declared that he will sign a Day 1 executive order designating cartels foreign terrorist organisations, allowing the government to take deadly measures against them.
„Under the orders I signed today, we will also be designating the cartels as foreign terrorist organisations. And by invoking the alien enemies act of 1798, I will direct our government to use the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eliminate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks bringing devastating crime to us, soil, including our cities and inner cities,“ Trump said.
(November 14, 2024)
The text of the Alien Enemies Act says it can be invoked whenever:
– A war is declared between the US and “any foreign nation or government” OR
– “Invasion or predatory incursion is perpetrated, attempted, or threatened against the territory of the United States by any foreign nation or government” AND
– “the President makes public proclamation of the event”
(November 28, 2024)
A senior Biden administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private consultations, said Wednesday that the outgoing Democratic administration wants Ukraine to lower the mobilization age to 18 from the current age of 25 to expand the pool of fighting-age men available to help a badly outnumbered Ukraine in its nearly three-year-old war with Russia.
The official said “the pure math” of Ukraine’s situation now is that it needs more troops in the fight
(November 27, 2024)
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan recently hinted that the US was pressuring Ukraine to expand conscription, saying Ukraine’s biggest problem in the war was the lack of manpower.
“Our view has been that there’s not one weapon system that makes a difference in this battle. It’s about manpower, and Ukraine needs to do more, in our view, to firm up its lines in terms of the number of forces it has on the front lines,” Sullivan said on PBS News Hour last week.
Before Israel and Hezbollah’s last war, in 2006, parents came to the border to bid their sons goodbye. In October, rows of tanks formed in southern Israel before invading the Gaza Strip.
„If a temporary ceasefire is signed, Jewish Power will not be committed to the coalition,“ Ben-Gvir said, referring to his far-right party.
„If the temporary ceasefire becomes permanent, we will resign from the government.“
Asked about Israel‘s rejection of a U.S.-backed Lebanon ceasefire proposal, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told MSNBC: „The world is speaking clearly for virtually all of the key countries in Europe and in the region on the need for the ceasefire.“
„You hear the jets overhead; we have been striking all day,“ General Herzi Halevi told Israeli troops on the border with Lebanon, according to a statement from the military.
„This is both to prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah.“
The mobilized reserve brigades are integrated armored-infantry brigades that have previously been mobilized in this war, and will return to increase the defensive operations in the Galilee Division, as well as participating in a ground invasion of Lebanon if one begins.
Earlier on Wednesday Northern Command head Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin said Israel has ‚entered a different stage of the campaign‘ and threatened a ground entry into Lebanon, after another morning with dozens of rockets launched in attacks on areas of northern Israel, and waves of Israel Air Force attacks from the air throughout Lebanon, including north and south of Beirut.
However, at the same time, the rule on demobilization after 36 months of service disappeared from the final version. (…)
The military members, who have been serving since 2022, were waiting for this provision, wrote DPSU officer Maksym Nesmyanov.
“This is a disaster… How could it be possible to promise demobilization to soldiers from December 2023, only to abandon them at the end!!! You can‘t take away hope from soldiers that they will return home,” Nesmyanov wrote on Facebook.