President Donald Trump has said the US will return two people who survived a strike on what he called a drug-carrying submarine to their countries of origin, Ecuador and Colombia.
Writing on social media, Trump stated that two other individuals were killed in the US strike on the vessel, which he claimed was loaded up with mostly Fentanyl, and other illegal narcotics.
The attack on Thursday is at least the sixth US strike on ships in the Caribbean Sea in recent weeks, and it is the first time survivors have been reported.
At least 27 people were killed in the prior five boat strikes in the waters off Venezuela, according to figures released by the administration.
The two survivors were rescued by a US military helicopter and subsequently transported onto a US warship, unnamed officials told US media.
Recently, Trump has heightened threats against Venezuela's leadership over allegations that the country is sending drugs to the US. In turn, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accused Trump of attempting to turn Venezuela into an American colony.
Trump has defended the ongoing boat attacks as a measure to stem the flow of drugs from Latin America into the US, although his government has not provided detailed evidence about the boats or the individuals on board.
It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE that was navigating towards the United States on a well-known narcotrafficking transit route, Trump asserted.
He mentioned that the two surviving individuals are being returned to their respective countries for detention and prosecution.
None of the US military personnel were injured in the attack.
On Friday, the president stated the submarine involved in the recent attack was built specifically for the transportation of massive amounts of drugs.
This was not an innocent group of people. I don't know too many people who have submarines, and that was an attack on a drug-carrying, loaded submarine, he added.
UN-appointed human rights experts have described the US strikes as extrajudicial executions.
Previously, Trump had conveyed to reporters that he authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela and was considering attacks on Venezuelan soil.
Narco-subs have become a popular method for transporting drugs as they are largely undetectable and can be sunk after delivery. They are often homemade, constructed with fiberglass and plywood.
The US and other coastal nations have intercepted several of these submarines in the past.
