The United States military confirmed that air and naval forces carried out strikes on three vessels suspected of drug trafficking in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing at least eight people. The operation, part of an ongoing anti-narcotics campaign, was announced Monday by the US Southern Command. Officials said the targeted ships were moving along a known smuggling route and were directly involved in narcotics transport.

According to a statement posted on social media platform X, intelligence reports indicated the vessels were part of transnational drug networks. The command described those killed as 'narco-terrorists'—three on the first vessel, two on the second, and three on the third. The strikes bring the total death toll from recent anti-smuggling missions in the region to over 90.

US military authorities emphasized that such operations will continue as part of broader efforts to curb international drug trafficking across maritime routes in the Pacific and the Caribbean.