Pete Hegseth Caribbean Missile Strike: US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has pushed back hard against claims that he told American forces to “kill everybody” during a strike on a boat in the Caribbean. News stories said he gave this order during a mission against a suspected drug vessel, but Hegseth said the stories were not true. He said the reports tried to harm the Trump administration’s work at sea and tried to attack the people serving in uniform.
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On Saturday, Hegseth wrote on X.
As usual, the fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland.
As we’ve said from the beginning, and in every statement, these highly effective strikes are specifically…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) November 28, 2025
He explained that the missions always had a clear goal and that the government had already shared that goal many times. Pete said the team described these operations as “lethal, kinetic strikes,” and these strikes aim to stop drug ships, destroy them, and target people who bring drugs into the United States.
Pete Hegseth Defends Trump Policies
Hegseth also used his message to compare President Trump’s policies with those of President Joe Biden. Pete said the earlier government acted tougher and did not “prefer the kid gloves approach.” Pete said he believed the current missions follow American law and international law. He said top legal experts approved the actions and said the people in US Southern Command face danger every day. He promised, “I will ALWAYS have their back.”
Reports claim Survivors were Hit in Second Strike
The Washington Post reported a different story. It said that on September 2, US forces watched a boat with 11 people on it. According to the report, two people with direct knowledge of the mission heard Hegseth say “kill everybody.” The story claimed that after the first missile strike, two people stayed alive on the broken pieces of the boat. The report said a second strike hit them after the order.
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The Guardian said this was only the first strike in a long wave of attacks. Their report said more than 80 people died and at least 22 boats were hit since September. USA Today also said that 83 people died in at least 21 attacks. The Trump administration said the people on the boats worked with drug groups like Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, which the US lists as a terrorist group. But news outlets said the government has not shown detailed proof. Some drug experts told the Associated Press that many people who died were not “narco-terrorists” or big cartel leaders.
Lawmakers from both parties reported by USA Today, also asked if these actions might break the law or count as killings without proper rules.
Leaders of the Senate armed services committee, Roger Wicker and Jack Reed, said they will investigate the strikes.
