‘Major explosion in dock area’: US hits drug boat loading facility in Venezuela, Trump announces

Donald Trump on Monday said that the United States had “hit” an area in Venezuela where boats are loaded with drugs, which would mark the first known time the US carried out operations on land in Venezuela since a pressure campaign began against the President Nicolas Maduro government.“There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs,” Trump said.“We hit all the boats, and now we hit the area… it’s the implementation area.”It was not immediately clear which part of the US govt acted and what target was hit. Trump previously said that he authorised the CIA to carry out covert operations in Venezuela.On a radio show last week, Trump made vague comments about an apparent US operation against a “big facility” in Venezuela. The Central Intelligence Agency, the White House and the Pentagon did not publicly elaborate on those comments and declined to comment on questions posed by Reuters. The Venezuelan government did not comment on the incident Trump described and there were no independent reports from Venezuela of it.The administration previously touted its success in taking out suspected drug trafficking vessels, and the Pentagon posted footage of several of its strikes on social media. The lack of response by US national security agencies raised questions about whether the incident Trump mentioned was carried out covertly. Such an operation would likely limit the ability of US officials to speak on the matter.Last month, Reuters reported that the US was poised to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations, as the Trump administration escalated pressure on Maduro’s govt. At the time, two US officials said covert operations would likely be the first part of the new action against Maduro.The US mission primarily focused on military strikes against suspected drug trafficking vessels and prompted intense oversight from Congress. More than 100 people were killed in more than 20 strikes in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.Earlier this month, US military leaders briefed lawmakers on an incident in September in which an American strike killed 11 people but left several survivors. They were killed in a second strike ordered by Admiral Frank Bradley. Democrats on Capitol Hill questioned whether the second strike was conducted in accordance with international law.Trump’s comments came amid a massive US military build up in the Caribbean, including more than 15,000 troops.