Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.) issued a statement Saturday vowing to conduct “vigorous oversight” on Caribbean strikes after a report surfaced that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the U.S. military to “kill everybody” aboard an alleged drug vessel.
Archiv: US Department of Defense (Pentagon / DoD)
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all
(November 28, 2025)
As two men clung to a stricken, burning ship targeted by SEAL Team 6, the Joint Special Operations commander followed the defense secretary’s order to leave no survivors.
Dear Attorney General Bondi and Secretary Hegseth:
(November 24, 2025)
Dear Attorney General Bondi and Secretary Hegseth:
We are writing to request expeditious declassification and public release of the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel’s written opinion, dated September 5, 2025, concerning the domestic and international legal basis for recent military strikes of certain vessels near South America and the Caribbean, with appropriate redactions necessary to protect military personnel and sensitive intelligence matters.
Significant and noteworthy precedent exists for the public release of OLC opinions related to overseas military action. After the United States carried out military strikes in Libya in 2011 and in Syria in 2018, the Department of Justice released the applicable OLC opinion justifying each operation.
Few decisions are more consequential for a democracy than the use of lethal force. We therefore believe that the declassification and public release of this important document would enhance transparency in the use of deadly force by our Nation’s military and is necessary to ensure Congress and the American people are fully informed of the legal justification supporting these strikes.
Sincerely,
Richard Blumenthal
United States Senator
Jack Reed
United States Senator
Jeanne Shaheen
United States Senator
Kirsten Gillibrand
United States Senator
Mazie K. Hirono
United States Senator
Tim Kaine
United States Senator
Angus S. King, Jr.
United States Senator
Elizabeth Warren
United States Senator
Gary C. Peters
United States Senator
Tammy Duckworth
United States Senator
Jacky Rosen
United States Senator
Mark Kelly
United States Senator
Elissa Slotkin
United States Senator
Over the past week, my team has made tremendous progress with respect to ending the War between Russia and Ukraine (A War that would have NEVER started if I were President!). Last month 25,000 soldiers died.
The original 28-Point Peace Plan, which was drafted by the United States, has been fine-tuned, with additional input from both sides, and there are only a few remaining points of disagreement. In the hopes of finalizing this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians. I will be briefed on all progress made, along with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. I look forward to hopefully meeting with President Zelenskyy and President Putin soon, but ONLY when the deal to end this War is FINAL or, in its final stages. Thank you for your attention to this very important matter, and let’s all hope that PEACE can be accomplished AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!
Witkoff to meet Putin as US sends delegations to Ukraine, Russia in ‚hopes of finalizing‘ peace plan
U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as Washington aims to finalize a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Nov. 25.
„In the hopes of finalizing this Peace Plan, I have directed my Special Envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with President Putin in Moscow and, at the same time, Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll will be meeting with the Ukrainians,“ Trump said in a post to Truth Social.
Senate Democrats ask Hegseth, Bondi to declassify DOJ memo on drug boat strikes
(November 24, 2025)
Senate Democrats are asking Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Attorney General Pam Bondi to declassify and publicly release the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Legal Counsel’s classified, written opinion outlining the legal basis for the Trump administration’s strikes against alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.
Thirteen Senate Democrats, all members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, are demanding an “expeditious declassification and public release” of the classified opinion, which was drafted over the summer and argued that U.S. troops who participate in boat strikes, which have taken place on both sides of South America, cannot be prosecuted.
Slotkin Demands Declassification and Public Release of Information on the Trump Administration’s Lethal Airstrikes
Nov 24, 2025 | Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) joined members of the Senate Armed Services Committee in writing to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth requesting the declassification and public release of the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) written opinion on the Trump Administration’s lethal airstrikes in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean.
“Few decisions are more consequential for a democracy than the use of lethal force. We therefore believe that the declassification and public release of this important document would enhance transparency in the use of deadly force by our Nation’s military and is necessary to ensure Congress and the American people are fully informed of the legal justification supporting these strikes,” the Senators wrote.
US Secretary of War visits region today; Maduro officials hold closed door talks
(November 25, 2025)
War Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, today to meet the country’s top leaders, including President Luis Abinader, Minister of Defence Lt Gen Carlos Antonio Fernández Onofre and other officials, the Associated Press reported yesterday.
The announcement came the same day that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar met yesterday.
Sen. Mark Kelly: Trump and Hegseth don‘t ‚understand the Constitution‘
On Monday, the Pentagon announced an investigation into Kelly, a retired U.S. Navy fighter pilot, for possible violations of military law for appearing in the video. The video was published as legal questions swirl around the Trump administration‘s deployment of National Guard troops to U.S. cities.
While the White House has since walked back the president‘s remarks calling the Senators‘ video „seditious behavior, punishable by DEATH,“ Kelly told All Things Considered he thinks President Trump is „declaring that loyalty to the Constitution is punishable by death.“
My Statement on FBI Request for Interviews
President Trump is using the FBI as a tool to intimidate and harass Members of Congress.
Yesterday, the FBI contacted the House and Senate Sergeants at Arms requesting interviews. No amount of intimidation or harassment will ever stop us from doing our jobs and honoring our Constitution.
We swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. We will not be bullied. We will never give up the ship.
President Trump is using the FBI as a tool to intimidate and harass members of Congress.
Yesterday, the FBI contacted the House and Senate Sergeants at Arms requesting interviews.
No amount of intimidation or harassment will ever stop us from doing our jobs and honoring our Constitution.
We swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. That oath lasts a lifetime, and we intend to keep it. We will not be bullied. We will never give up the ship.
FBI scheduling interviews with 6 lawmakers who encouraged military members to refuse ‚illegal orders‘
On Monday, the Department of War announced that it has opened a formal review into allegations of misconduct against Kelly over the video.
The Pentagon said it may even call Kelly, a retired Navy captain, back to active duty to face court-martial proceedings or other administrative actions under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). Four of the other Democrats are former military, but not retired and therefore are not subject to the UCMJ, according to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Slotkin is a former CIA officer.
Pentagon threatens to recall Sen. Mark Kelly to military service for court martial over illegal orders video
The investigation comes as President Donald Trump has been pushing relentlessly for consequences for Kelly and five other Democratic lawmakers over a video they made reminding servicemembers of their duty to disobey illegal orders, calling their actions “seditious” and “treason.”
Because Kelly was a senior officer who retired from the Navy, he is required to remain available for recall to the military by law. The other five lawmakers, Sen. Elissa Slotkin, Rep. Jason Crow, Rep. Maggie Goodlander, Rep. Chris Deluzio and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, are not eligible for recall to a military service.
US strikes another boat in Caribbean Sea, killing 3
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced another deadly U.S. strike on a boat he said was trafficking narcotics in the Caribbean Sea.
The attack Thursday killed three people aboard the vessel, Hegseth said, bringing the death toll from the Trump administration’s campaign in South American waters up to at least 69 people in at least 17 strikes
Patriotic Front: Citizens want informed leaders
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.“
15th US strike kills 3 more
The operation carried out on Saturday brings the total number of strikes carried out by the US in the Caribbean and Pacific to 15 and the total number of deaths 65.
US military kills three in another strike on Caribbean vessel
The operation, which began in early September, has killed more than 62 people, including nationals from Venezuela and Colombia, and destroyed 14 boats and a semi-submersible.
The Trump administration has said the attacks are targeting alleged drug smuggling, but has yet to present any evidence to the public to substantiate its claims.
Critics have called the strikes a form of extrajudicial killing and a violation of international law, which largely prohibits countries from using lethal military force against noncombatants outside a conflict zone.
Trump says he’s ordered Pentagon to ‘prepare for possible action’ in Nigeria
In a social media post criticizing what he called the “mass slaughter” of Christians in the country, Trump wrote the United States would “immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria” and warned the government there to “move fast.”
In the lengthy message, Trump said the US “may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.”
Operation Northwoods
(March 13, 1962)
c. Commence large scale United States military operations.
3. A „Remember the Maine“ incident could be arranged in several forms:
a. We could blow up a US ship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba.
b. We could blow up a drone (unmanned) vessel anywhere in the Cuban waters. We could arrange to cause such incident in the vicinity of Havana or Santiago as a spectacular result of Cuban attack from the air or sea, or both. The presence of Cuban planes or ships merely investigating the intent of the vessel could be fairly compelling evidence that the ship was taken under attack. The nearness to Havana or Santiago would add credibility especially to those people that might have heard the blast or have seen the fire. The US could follow up with an air/sea rescue operation covered by US fighters to „evacuate“ remaining members of the non-existent crew. Casualty lists in US newspapers would cause a helpful wave of national indignation.
4. We could develop a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington.
The terror campaign could be pointed at refugees seeking haven in the United States. We could sink a boatload of Cubans en route to Florida (real or simulated). We could foster attempts on lives of Cuban refugees in the United States even to the extent of wounding in instances to be widely publicized. Exploding a few plastic bombs in carefully chosen spots, the arrest of Cuban agents and the release of prepared documents substantiating Cuban involvement, also would be helpful in projecting the idea of an irresponsible government.
Declassified Papers Show Anti-Castro Ideas Proposed to Kennedy
(19. November 1997)
“We could blow up a US warship in Guantanamo Bay and blame Cuba,“ the memorandum said.
“We could develop a Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington,“ it continued. “The terror campaign could be pointed at Cuban refugees seeking haven in the United States. We could sink a boatload of Cubans enroute to Florida (real or simulated).“
The records show that on March 13, 1962, the Joint Chiefs of Staff endorsed these ideas as “suitable for planning purposes.“ No evidence exists that they were carried out.
DER 11. SEPTEMBER: Duplikat, Drone, Plan
(12. September 2014)
Bereits vor Jahrzehnten entwickelte das Militär der Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika den Plan ein eigenes ziviles Passagierflugzeug in der Luft gegen eine unbemannte „Drone“ auszutauschen, um diese dann selbst zur Explosion zu bringen und einen Abschuss vorzutäuschen. Ebenso wurde der Plan einer „Terrorkampagne“ in der eigenen Hauptstadt Washington, sowie die Versenkung eines US-Kriegsschiffes autorisiert. Ziel war es, diese Vorfälle einer feindlichen Macht zu unterstellen, vor der Weltöffentlichkeit das Opfer zu spielen und nachfolgend eine Invasion starten zu können.
Jahr der Entwicklung des Plans: 1962. Zielobjekt: Kuba.
U.S. and Trinidad and Tobago Launch Joint Defense Forces Exercises
(October 24, 2025)
The USS Gravely (DDG-107) will visit Trinidad and Tobago from October 26 to 30, mooring in Port of Spain, while the 22nd U.S. Marine Expeditionary Unit will train alongside the Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force (TTDF) during the same week. The U.S. military services’ presence in Trinidad and Tobago is part of the longstanding cooperation between the United States and Trinidad and Tobago.
US kills 14 in new attack on Pacific vessels
Fourteen people were killed and one survived, as a result of another attack by the U.S. War Department against three vessels sailing in the waters of the Eastern Pacific.
The information was confirmed by the Secretary of the US Department of War, Pete Hegseth, who detailed in his X account that “three lethal kinetic attacks were carried out against four vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations (…) A total of 14 narcoterrorists died during the three attacks.”
Brief History of the Domain Name System
Jan. 7, 1958 – President Eisenhower requested funds to start ARPA.
(…)
– Early 1967 – Meeting of ARPA’s principal investigators in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Roberts (the director of the IPTO) put forward the idea of a computer network. Wes Clark introduced the idea of a subnetwork: small, identical computers all interconnected – “interface message processors (IMPs).” Engelbert volunteered to the Network Information Center (NIC).
– 1967 – Roberts published paper on ARPANET.
– End of 1967 – The Association for Computing Machinery’s computer conference in Gatliburg, Tennessee. Roberts presented his first paper on ARPANET and heard of work done by Donald Davies’ team at NPL and Paul Baran at RAND.
(…)
Summer 1975 – The Defense Communications Agency (DCA) took over the management of ARPANET.
(…)
– November 1983 – The rapid growth of the internet caused massive problems in bookkeeping. To deal with this problem a group including Jon Postel, Paul Mockapetris and Craig Partrige published RFC 882 which created the domain name system (DNS) to make Internet navigation easier. With DNS, users can type host names such as “USC-ISIF” instead of “10.2.0.52.” Every Address would have information from specific to general.
Analysts warn regime change in Venezuela could destabilise region
(October 23, 2025)
Former Grenada House Speaker Chester Humphrey accused Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar of capitulating to US policy in a way that was not befitting of the office she held.
“This is what is happening to the prime ministership in Trinidad and Tobago! It is being desecrated by someone who, first of all, may be in a state of stupor, does not understand the principles involved in the zone of peace,” Humphrey said.
PM blames Opposition for panic over arrival of US warship
(October 24, 2025)
The PM said the Government welcomes the US Navy and Marine Corps for a “joint military training with the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force.”
Persad-Bissessar reiterated, “The Ministry of Foreign and Caricom Affairs has stated that the USS Gravely (DDG-107) will visit Trinidad and Tobago from October 26 to 30, mooring in Port-of-Spain, while the 22nd US Marine Expeditionary Unit will conduct joint training exercises with the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force (TTDF) during the same period.”
US warship to dock in Trinidad on Sunday
(October 23, 2025)
Container operations at the Port of Port-of-Spain will be suspended on several berths from October 26-30 to accommodate the USS Gravely (DDG-107), a United States Navy vessel scheduled to arrive here on Sunday.
This was confirmed last evening in a release by the Ministry of Caricom and Foreign Affairs, which also revealed that the 22nd US Marine Expeditionary Unit will conduct joint training with the T&T Defence Force (TTDF) during the same period.
Top admiral’s retirement sets off alarm bells over Caribbean boat strikes
(October 19, 2025)
In a surprise move, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced that U.S. Southern Command (Southcom) head Adm. Alvin Holsey would step down at the end of the year, two years ahead of schedule. (…)
“Everything we’re seeing is setting off alarm bells,” said Brian Finucane, a national security lawyer with the International Crisis Group, an organization focused on conflict resolution. “The military buildup in the Caribbean, these lawless strikes on vessels there … the administration talking about potential action in Venezuela. None of this is being undertaken with congressional authorization.”
US is sending an aircraft carrier to Latin America in major escalation of military buildup
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford and its strike group to deploy to U.S. Southern Command to “bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a social media post.
US military flew supersonic B-1 bombers up to the coast of Venezuela
The U.S. military flew a pair of supersonic, heavy bombers up to the coast of Venezuela on Thursday, a little over a week after another group of American bombers made a similar journey as part of a training exercise to simulate an attack.
Another US strike in Caribbean targets alleged drug-running boat, killing 6, Hegseth says
In a 20-second black and white video of the strike that was posted to social media, a small boat can be seen apparently sitting motionless on the water when a long thin projectile descends on it resulting in an explosion. The video ends before the explosion dies down enough for the remains of the boat to become visible again.
In his post, Hegseth said that the strike was conducted in international waters and boasted that it was the first one conducted at night.
Pope Leo XIV says Hegseth’s talk of war is ‘worrying’
(September 30, 2025)
Asked about the secretary’s meeting with the generals and comments about readiness for war, Pope Leo said: “This way of speaking is worrying, because it shows each time an increase in tensions — this vocabulary, even shifting from ‘Minister of Defense’ to ‘Minister of War.’ Let’s hope it is only a way of speaking. Certainly, they have a style of government where they want to show strength, to put pressure, and we hope it works, but that there will not be war. One must always work for peace.”
Donald Trump, Pete Hegseth, and the “War from Within”
(October 5, 2025)
Peace abroad and war at home? It’s an unusual note to strike in an electoral democracy.