JTF Southern Spear killed four aboard suspected narcotics vessel in eastern Pacific; 22nd strike, ~87 campaign deaths
On December 4, 2025, U.S. Southern Command's Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel in international waters in the eastern Pacific, killing four people on board. The Department of Defense claimed the boat was operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization and was carrying narcotics, but released no supporting evidence. The strike was one of roughly 23 carried out since early September 2025, in which approximately 87 people had been killed without arrest, charge, or any judicial process.