Since President Donald Trump returned for a second term in January 2025, his rhetoric on the use of U.S. military force around the globe has been inconsistent. While publicly pledging to be the president that ends wars, in March 2025 Trump began a major military escalation in Yemen, has hailed a number of U.S. attacks in Somalia, and in September 2025 launched a series of strikes on alleged drug cartels in small boats in the Caribbean.
On policy matters, Trump’s Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has pushed for a “warrior ethos,” and been criticised for questioning the relevance of the Geneva Conventions.
With signs of both escalated use of force and a crackdown on transparency, this collection gathers relevant material to help ensure a robust public record of the actions of the world’s most powerful military.
On January 3rd 2026 the US conducted a series of strikes on Venezuela, as part of an operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. This collection includes both incidents that killed and injured civilians, as well as incidents where civilian infrastructure was damaged.
Airwars’ latest documentation of civilian harm claims from U.S. interventions
Airwars tracking of U.S. military strikes against alleged ‘narco-terrorists’ in small boats
U.S. forces conducted the first known drone strike in Yemen in 2002, and have conducted periodic strikes against Al-Qaeda since 2009. In late 2023, Houthi militants began attacking shipping in the Red Sea in support of Palestinian militants in Gaza. In response, US-led forces began a campaign against the Houthis, with an escalation March-May 2025. […]
US forces began conducting airstrikes against Al-Qaeda in Somalia in 2007. Following Ethiopia’s military intervention and the capture of large swathes of the country by Al-Shabaab, US forces escalated their air campaign. Airwars has documented numerous allegations of civilian harm from US strikes in Somalia since 2007.
Airwars’ investigations into civilian harm under Trump, and other research building on our findings
Incidents of civilian harm from the first year of Trump’s military campaigns, including incidents in Yemen with more than ten fatalities, and a one-off Nigeria strike on Christmas day.
A selection of munitions identified through open source investigation as part of our partner project with Armament Research Services
In recent years the United States has made significant advances in the field of civilian protection, introducing new policies and institutions to address widespread allegations of harm to civilians from U.S. actions.
With a new administration in place under Trump and a shake up of all branches of government, our policy team are tracking the impact of changes to civilian protection commitments.
