The U.S. government claimed that the strikes aimed to dismantle “narco-terrorist” networks tied to Venezuelan criminal groups and senior officials. It has described the operations as part of a broader strategy to combat drug trafficking and transnational organized crime, claiming that the targeted vessels were engaged in transporting narcotics. However, several international observers have argued that the publicly available evidence supporting the U.S. government’s claims is limited, and legal experts have characterized the strikes as “extrajudicial killings” inconsistent with international law when conducted in international waters without clear legal basis.
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