On November 4, 2025, the United States military carried out a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel allegedly affiliated with “a Designated Terrorist Organization,” reportedly killing two men described as “narco-terrorists” in international waters in the Eastern Pacific.

@SecWar Pete Hegseth published a statement on Twitter/X on November 4th announcing the strike “today” on a vessel reportedly involved in “illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking transit route, and carrying narcotics”. In the video included in the post, a boat can be seen floating (it does not appear to be moving) in the water until it erupts in flames and smoke. The surveillance shows the boat in flames from multiple angles.

There were no additional details found among local sources about the victims.

Methodological note about classification of those killed in this incident

In documenting this incident, Airwars is following the guidance outlined by independent International Human Rights Law and International Humanitarian Law experts, whereby those on the vessels are understood to be civilians, given that the legal framework in which the strikes are being conducted remains in question.

Airwars has therefore included a civilian casualty count of two deaths.