US military says 2 killed in eastern Pacific boat strike, with 1 survivor [View all]

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Source: CNN

Politics * 1 min read

US military says 2 killed in eastern Pacific boat strike, with 1 survivor

Updated 36 min ago
Updated Jan 23, 2026, 6:07 PM ET
PUBLISHED Jan 23, 2026, 5:36 PM ET
By Clay Voytek


This screengrab taken from a video shows an alleged drug-trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean, before it was struck on Friday, January 23, 2026. US Southern Command said that the strike killed two people and left one survivor. (US Southern Command)

The US military conducted a strike against another alleged drug-trafficking boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Friday, killing two people, according to US Southern Command. ... One individual survived the strike, and SOUTHCOM said it notified the US Coast Guard to activate a search and rescue mission for the survivor.

"On Jan. 23, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations," SOUTHCOM wrote on X. ... CNN has reached out to the Coast Guard for comment.

At least 117 people have now been killed in strikes on suspected drug boats as part of a campaign, dubbed Operation Southern Spear, that the Trump administration has said is aimed at curtailing narcotics trafficking.

The US military most recently struck two boats on December 31, killing five people.

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Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/23/politics/us-military-strikes-boat-pacific-survivor