President Donald Trump confirmed he authorized the CIA to take unspecified action in Venezuela while addressing reporters on Wednesday (October 16) via NBC News.
“I authorized for two reasons, really. No. 1, they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America,” Trump said before claiming that narcotics trafficking was his second reason.
“And the other thing are drugs. We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela,” he added.
The president’s confirmation came hours after the New York Times reported that he authorized the CIA to take lethal action in Venezuela. Trump was also asked whether the CIA had authority to “take out” Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
“Oh, I don’t want to answer a question like that,” Trump said via NBC News. “That’s a ridiculous question for me to be given. Not really a ridiculous question, but wouldn’t it be a ridiculous question for me to answer?”
“I think Venezuela is feeling heat,” he added. “But I think a lot of other countries are feeling heat, too.”
Six people were killed after the U.S. military struck another boat alleged to be trafficking drugs off Venezuela’s coast, Trump announced on his Truth Social account Tuesday (October 14).
“Under my Standing Authorities as Commander-in-Chief, this morning, the Secretary of War, ordered a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO) conducting narcotrafficking in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility — just off the Coast of Venezuela,” Trump wrote along with unclassified video footage of the strike. “Intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking narcotics, was associated with illicit narcoterrorist networks, and was transiting along a known DTO route. The strike was conducted in International Waters, and six male narcoterrorists aboard the vessel were killed in the strike. No U.S. Forces were harmed. Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!!!!”
The U.S. has announced at least five such strikes on boats alleged to be trafficking drugs, with the Pentagon previously announcing another strike of the coast of Venezuela earlier this month.
“Earlier this morning, on President Trump’s orders, I directed a lethal, kinetic strike on a narco-trafficking vessel affiliated with Designated Terrorist Organizations in the USSOUTHCOM area of responsibility,” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on his X account, along with an unclassified video of the attack, on October 3. “Four male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed in the strike, and no U.S. forces were harmed in the operation. The strike was conducted in international waters just off the coast of Venezuela while the vessel was transporting substantial amounts of narcotics – headed to America to poison our people. Our intelligence, without a doubt, confirmed that this vessel was trafficking narcotics, the people onboard were narco-terrorists, and they were operating on a known narco-trafficking transit route. These strikes will continue until the attacks on the American people are over!!!!”
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