Was The U.S. Attack On A Venezuelan Boat A War Crime?

Summary

---

Fresh Air | NPR

Episode: Was The U.S. Attack On A Venezuelan Boat A War Crime?

Date: December 3, 2025
Host: Terry Gross
Guest: Alex Horton, Washington Post National Security Reporter

---

Episode Overview

This episode explores the controversial U.S. military strike on a Venezuelan boat in the Caribbean on September 2, 2025, which resulted in the deaths of all 11 people on board. The Trump administration justified the attacks by alleging the boat carried narco-terrorists and drugs (specifically fentanyl), despite a lack of evidence. The episode investigates whether this attack—and the subsequent killing of two survivors in the water—constitutes a war crime or murder under international law. Alex Horton, the reporter who broke the story, provides detailed insights, context, and reactions to the administration's recent defenses and Congressional scrutiny.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Details of the Incident and Military Orders

• Mission Overview:
  • The U.S. strike was part of a broader White House-directed operation to stop drug trafficking into the U.S. (04:20)
  • The action involved Seal Team 6, not traditional military assets like jets or destroyers.
  • A first strike on the boat killed most crew. Two survivors clung to wreckage before being killed by a second strike.
• Chain of Command:
  • The order originated from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who told Admiral Frank Bradley (Joint Special Operations Commander) to "kill everyone on board" (04:50).
  • Horton’s reporting indicates the order to kill all was made clear before the first strike.

2. Watching and Executing the Strikes

• Surveillance:
  • The strike was monitored via real-time drone footage (06:10).
• Killing Survivors:
  • After observing two survivors, Admiral Bradley authorized a second missile strike to kill them, reasoning that both the persons and drugs could be rescued otherwise (06:10).
  • The survivors were “blown apart in the water.” (06:47)

3. Rules of Engagement & International Law

• Land vs. Sea Engagement:
  • On land, re-attacking wounded is sometimes permissible depending on threat and situation (07:53).
  • At sea, those shipwrecked are protected under international law; attacking them is generally prohibited unless they pose immediate threat (09:23).
  • These rules came out of WWII to protect survivors who have no means of defense or escape. (09:23)
• Potential Legal Violation:
  • Legal experts suggest that these actions could constitute murder at sea, not a permissible act of war. Civilian traffickers are not lawful combatants (12:11).

4. Reactions from U.S. Administration

• Hegseth’s Stance:
  • In both public and private comments, Hegseth promoted aggressive use of force and criticized restrictive rules of engagement, preferring to "untie the hands" of warfighters (11:34)
  • Defended the strike, did not see survivors himself but supported "eliminating the threat." (17:01–18:18).
  • Accused media and politicians of “planting fake stories,” expressing open disdain for oversight and legal advice (18:18).
• President Trump:
  • Claimed limited knowledge of the operation; stated, “I want those boats taken out, and if we have to, we'll attack on land also.” (21:28)
  • Supported military force as needed but distanced himself from details. (22:18, 43:04)

5. Congressional and Legal Response

• Debate on War Crime or Murder:
  • Ongoing Congressional review as bipartisan concern rises (04:05, 12:11, 25:18).
  • The distinction between war crime and murder is significant, as legal status hinges on whether the targets were combatants or civilians (25:18–26:30).
  • Horton: “Just because you use the military doesn’t mean whoever you’re attacking is a combatant or a lawful target.” (25:23)
• Accountability:
  • Questions about orders: Were they ambiguous? Who is responsible—Bradley or Hegseth? (10:58, 19:25, 29:09, 33:27)
  • Bradley’s Navy background implies he should know shipwreck protections (26:30).
• Policy Changes:
  • After the attack, subsequent missions reportedly planned more for the possibility of survivors—implying the initial plan was lacking. (23:45)

6. Broader Geopolitical Context

• Relation to Venezuela:
  • The strikes are potentially part of a campaign to pressure Nicolas Maduro’s regime (04:05, 38:03).
  • Most U.S. forces in the Caribbean are not involved in direct strikes—suggesting broader strategic posturing (38:03, 43:04).
• Rationale Issues:
  • Administration linked Venezuelan cocaine trafficking and fentanyl deaths in the U.S., but evidence for fentanyl transport via Venezuela is practically non-existent (39:13–48:50).
  • The Cartel de los Soles is described as loosely organized and not comparable to major cartels like Sinaloa (40:49).
• Escalation Threats:
  • Trump willing to expand campaign to land attacks in Venezuela (22:18, 43:04)
  • Actual risk of war is unclear—depends on targets and responses (46:07).

7. Moral and Strategic Concerns

• Setting International Precedent:
  • Horton warns that violating the rules of engagement jeopardizes U.S. standing and endangers its own personnel if other nations reciprocate (29:34–32:09).
  • “You do not want to be an American sailor...and see a Chinese plane coming...because that pilot’s going to feel a whole different set of ways about whether he can kill me or not.” (31:30)
• Conflicting Governance:
  • The attack on a suspected drug boat contrasts sharply with Trump’s pardon of the former Honduran president convicted for cartel cooperation—highlighting inconsistencies (47:27–50:01).
  • “You don’t smuggle cherries out of Iowa. You smuggle corn. Right? ... This is the region. So how do you square these two things?” (48:50, Alex Horton)

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On killing shipwrecked survivors:
  • “They have no ability to do anything except wade in the water and try to survive...there are very clear protections...you can’t shoot them again in a circumstance like this.”
    —Alex Horton (09:23)
• On rules of engagement:
  • “We untie the hands of our war fighters to intimidate, demoralize, hunt, and kill the enemies of our country. No more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement.”
    —Pete Hegseth (11:34)
• On the legal framing:
  • “Just because you use the military doesn’t mean whoever you’re attacking is a combatant or a lawful target.”
    —Alex Horton (25:23)
• Concerning future retaliation:
  • “There is sometimes this tit for tat...If the US doesn’t [comply with law], then it doesn’t matter what we do. And there is this...you do not want to be an American sailor...see a Chinese plane coming...because that pilot’s going to feel a whole different set of ways about whether he can kill me or not.”
    —Alex Horton (31:30–32:09)
• On trafficking claims:
  • “What they’re carrying is more likely marshmallows than fentanyl. That’s how unlikely it’s fentanyl...You don’t smuggle cherries out of Iowa. You smuggle corn. Right?”
    —Alex Horton (48:34, 48:50)
• On accountability:
  • “We are looking for more consistency in the Trumps...hard line approach to drug trafficking.”
    —Alex Horton (50:01)

---

Important Timestamps

• 04:20 – Horton describes the strike and chain of command.
• 06:10 – Explanation of second strike on survivors.
• 09:23 – Maritime rules of engagement and shipwreck survivor protections.
• 11:34 – Hegseth’s statement on rules of engagement.
• 17:01 – Hegseth defends the strike, attacks media reporting.
• 21:28 – Trump distances himself, signals willingness to escalate.
• 25:18–26:30 – Legal debate: war crime vs murder.
• 29:34–32:09 – Consequences for US global standing and risk of reciprocity.
• 38:03–41:46 – Venezuela’s role in drug trafficking and the “Cartel de los Soles.”
• 43:04 – Discussion of escalating to war or further military action.
• 47:27–50:01 – Inconsistency in drug war rhetoric, contrasting with pardoning a convicted leader.

---

Flow and Tone

The conversation is direct and probing, blending journalistic investigation with legal and military expertise. Alex Horton brings both the rigor of reporting and personal military experience; Terry Gross presses for clarity amid political posturing and ambiguity. The tone is serious and analytical, with moments of sharp critique and subtle incredulity directed at official narratives.

---

Summary Takeaways

• The U.S. attack on a Venezuelan boat—particularly the killing of survivors—may have violated international law and set a dangerous precedent.
• Orders from Secretary Hegseth to "kill everyone on board" are at the heart of Congressional and legal scrutiny.
• Administration narratives linking Venezuela to fentanyl trafficking are not substantiated by facts.
• Legal, ethical, and strategic consequences—including the risk of future retaliation against Americans—are underappreciated by current leadership.
• There is significant Congressional concern and growing calls for accountability, as well as debate over the legitimacy of using military force in law enforcement contexts.

---

For those who haven’t listened:
This episode unpacks a major international incident and offers a rare, step-by-step breakdown of how military, legal, and political frameworks collide—with expert testimony and a critical eye toward government transparency and accountability.

Transcript

[NPR Sponsor Announcer]

This message comes from Capital One. Capital One offers checking accounts with no fees or minimums. What's in your wallet terms apply. See capitalone.combank for details. Capital One NA Member FDIC hi, it's Terry Gross.

[Terry Gross]

Before we start the show today, I want to make sure you know it's a special time at NPR because yesterday was Giving Tuesday, and as we like to think of it, this is Giving Tuesday week. NPR celebrates this time of generosity every year, but we've never had a year quite like this one before. You've probably heard by now that federal funding for public media was eliminated as of October 1st. That means NPR is now operating without federal support for the first time in our history. That's more than 50 years. It's a big change and a big challenge, but it's one we can overcome together. You count on FRESH AIR to bring you interviews that help us get to know the writers, directors and musicians who are making their mark on American culture and investigative journalists who are revealing politically related stories we otherwise might never know about. And we're so grateful to the listeners who have already stepped up to donate, like Emily from New York, who says public radio provides access to good, reliable information and thought provoking entertainment. FRESH AIR got me through tedious experiments in graduate school. Since NPR is no longer receiving federal funding, I want to do my part to support this important resource.

Thanks, Emily. I'm proud we helped you get through graduate school no matter how and when you started listening. I hope you'll make your Giving Tuesday gift now by signing up for npr. It's a simple recurring donation that gets you perks to NPR's podcasts like bonus episodes from FRESH AIR and other shows. So join us at plus.NPR.org thanks again for your support. And let's get on with the show. This is FRESH air. I'm Terry Gross. My guest, Alex Horton is the reporter who broke the story that's been dominating the news since last Friday when it was published in the Washington Post. It's about what happened on September 2nd when the US military carried out the first deadly strike on a Venezuelan boat in the Caribbean. All 11 aboard were killed. The Trump administration alleged the targets were narco terrorists and that the boat was carrying drugs. Despite providing no evidence, however, two of the crew actually survived the initial strike. They were alive in the water holding onto the wreckage while when they were killed in a subsequent strike, Horton and his colleague Ellen Nakashima reported that the command to kill the survivors was issued by Admiral Frank Bradley, the special operations commander overseeing the mission and that he was complying with Defense Secretary Pete Hexseth's verbal command to kill everyone on board. But Hecseth's order came before the actual strikes. The Washington Post report led to House and Senate lawmakers from both sides of the aisle to call for reviews of the boat strikes. Some are raising the question of whether this amounts to a war crime or murder. The US military has conducted strikes on at least 20 other vessels of alleged drug smugglers, killing dozens in the last few months. This may be part of the Trump administration's pressure campaign to get Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro to relinquish power and the possibility that the US could go to war with Venezuela if he doesn't. That's something we'll discuss later in the interview. Alex Horton is a Washington Post national security reporter focused on the US Military. We recorded our interview yesterday morning. Later in the day, President Donald Trump and Secretary Pete Heseth commented on the story during a Cabinet meeting. So he spoke to Horton again this morning to get his response to what was said. We'll hear that in a few minutes. But the first part of this interview sets up what happened during the September 2nd attack. Alex Horton, welcome to FRESH AIR. I want you to describe the story that you broke on Friday.

[Alex Horton]

Yeah, thanks for having me, Terry. The strike was the first one that the Pentagon undertook in its mission directed from the White House to stop drug trafficking and drug traffickers from bringing their drugs into the United States. So there was this entire apparatus that was surged into the Caribbean. There's warships, there's aircraft carriers. And, you know, what you describe is, you know, a buildup for this pressure campaign. But at the same time, there was a parallel mission to go after drug traffickers, particularly in speedboats and in semi submersibles, you know, really the business end, the last few miles to get to their distribution point. So, you know, what we know from our reporting now is this first mission and some of the ones that followed were not undertaken by these forces that were in the region, that this wasn't a matter of fighter jets and destroyers. It was an elite team of special operators from Seal Team 6. This is the same unit that went on the mission to kill Osama bin Laden. These are the ones you call for the most high stakes missions that can be done. So on September 2nd, they observed a boat that they grew increasingly confident had drugs. And once they reached a certain level of confidence that this boat was carrying drugs, Secretary Hegseth who was overseeing the operation that day, he is what's known as the Target engagement authority, what he says goes on to strike or target. And he authorized a strike to be taken. So once that decision was made to strike the boat, Admiral Frank Bradley, who was at the time the Joint Special Operations Commander, authorized a missile to hit that boat. The commanders had watched it for some time, burned, and they felt pretty good that everyone on board was killed.

[Terry Gross]

But watching it live stream, they were.

[Alex Horton]

Watching a, you know, live drone surveillance video of it. But once the smoke cleared, they. They saw there were two survivors. And Admiral Bradley, acting on his orders and guidance from Megseth that he wanted people in that boat to be killed, ordered a second strike. And his rationale at the time, during that moment, was they could be picked up by other traffickers and the drugs could be picked up too. And the drugs are the ultimate mission. So they needed to do something about that. So Admiral Bradley authorized that second strike on those survivors. And from what we heard from someone who watched it, those two men were blown apart in the water.

[Terry Gross]

So you served in the army infantry in Iraq, and you're familiar with certain rules of engagement and you know the difference between attacking survivors at sea versus on land. So tell us what the rules of engagement are in the sea with a shipwreck like this, where the survivors are clinging to the remains of the ship for their life.

[Alex Horton]

Yeah, there's a lot of distinction between the two. And like you said, I'm a land guy. The maritime domain is less familiar to me. But here's how I understand it and what law of war experts have laid out. When you're fighting someone on land, in combat, there's a number of places you can go. You can retreat to another room. You could patch yourself up in a corner. If you're shot, you have the ability to call other people on the radio to come get you in a vehicle. There are other circumstances of where you could conceal yourself and maybe rearm and regroup before your enemy has a chance to figure out what has happened to you. It's a pretty low standard to re attack someone.

[Terry Gross]

Can you give us an example of what you mean?

[Alex Horton]

Sure. You know, one moment comes to mind. When I was, you know, with my platoon in Dialla Province in 2007. So this was, you know, the most violent year of the surge. We were fighting street to street and house to house with the group that would become the Islamic State. And we were on patrol on a particularly heavy fighting day. And we set up in a school to sort of look out over some rooftops, and we watched a two man machine gun team set up and put their gun in our direction to get ready to fire. So several of us shot them while they were setting up. They stopped moving for the most part. We kept shooting just to make sure that they were dead. We couldn't go there and check. And then after a few minutes, we called in an Apache gunship to shoot a Hellfire into the building to do two things. One, to make sure they were dead, and two, to kill any other militants that we weren't even sure about, that we didn't see at the time. And that was. That's permissible because we had an engagement. We knew there were armed militants in the area. We knew civilians were, by and large, had evacuated. And, you know, we couldn't be sure that they were killed until we got closer to them. If we were to have gotten closer to them, this calculus would change. You know, that we would see they were wounded, and if they cannot reach a gun or if they don't have explosives on them, then it would become our obligation and responsibility to help them.

[Terry Gross]

Compare that to the rules at sea after a shipwreck.

[Alex Horton]

There's a very stark line between these two, and it's much less forgiving for this type of environment. If a US Ship strikes a Navy vessel and it goes down or it's basically a wreck that can't function or move or fire back, and there are sailors in the water, unless they are engaging you with a weapon, they are essentially, as the law says, shipwrecked. They have no ability to do anything except wade in the water and try to survive. They have no ability to retreat. They certainly don't have an option to get away from you. And they have very few, if any, ways where they could play a trick on you and try to ambush you if you came to retrieve them. So there are very clear protections. And this came out of World War II when this was. This happened on both the Allies and the Axis side of people who were shipwrecked getting engaged when they couldn't do anything about it. So now the rule for international war and lawfare is you need to protect people who are shipwrecked, and you can't shoot them again in a circumstance like this. Now there is room for nuance. How destroyed was that boat? Did Bradley make a determination that it was still seaworthy? That part's unclear at this moment. So there is some wiggle room if you want to say they were legitimate targets because they could have gotten out of there.

[Terry Gross]

Was Secretary Hexseth's order ambiguous? Did the order need to be More specific.

[Alex Horton]

We're still trying to understand the contours of that order, that verbal order, you know, the manner in which he gave it. Was it a swashbuckling, swagger type of thing, as he is prone to do as the Defense secretary? Was it a formal directive to Bradley and how many people heard it? These are all things we're still trying to figure out.

[Terry Gross]

Speaking of swashbuckling orders, I want to play something Hecseth said to military leaders when he gathered military leaders from around the globe in Quantico, Virginia, on September 30th.

[Pete Hegseth]

We fight to win. We unleash overwhelming and punishing violence on the enemy. We also don't fight with stupid rules of engagement. We untie the hands of our war fighters to intimidate, demoralize, hunt, and kill the enemies of our country. No more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement. Just common sense, maximum lethality and. And authority for war fighters.

[Terry Gross]

So, Alex, like, is Heath saying we're just ignoring the rules of engagement now because we decided to.

[Alex Horton]

You know, this is something that the Senate and the House Armed Services Committees are looking to entangle is any number of things to include, you know, what were the authorities taken and did they violate any rules of engagement? You know, I think it's important to remember, you know, exit, I think, made it pretty crystal clear his. His view on this. As you may know, you know, before he was Defense secretary, one of his priorities while he was a Fox News host on the weekends was to champion Iraq and Afghanistan veterans that he felt were unfairly prosecuted for war crimes. And there were a number that, you know, weren't just accused, but were convicted. He. He talked about this consistently, that he feels military attorneys who offer the advice of how to conduct yourself lawfully, that it's too overbearing, it's too bureaucratic of a process and too soft. And he would prefer that war is left to what he calls the war fighters and not to the military lawyers. And the consensus of military law experts have said that all of this talk about the rules of engagement, that all of that is an academic exercise that's besides the point, that these are civilian traffickers who are alleged criminals, but not lawful combatants. So therefore, everything that I laid out about what it's like to be in combat and making these decisions and the distinctions, what they're saying is this. It is all moot because this is homicide or murder on the high seas, rather than this trying to pick apart the nuances of military law. That is, it is a separate thing entirely.

[Terry Gross]

If you're just joining us. My guest is Alex Horton. He's a Washington Post national security reporter. We'll be right back. This is FRESH AIR.

[NPR Sponsor Announcer]

This message comes from BetterHelp. As a dad, BetterHelp President Fernando Madera relates to needing flexibility when it comes to scheduling therapy.

[Alex Horton]

I have kids under 18, so like.

[Pete Hegseth]

Time is very limited.

[Peter Sagal]

That's why at BetterHelp, our therapists try.

[Alex Horton]

To have sessions sometimes at night, depending on the therapist, or during the weekend. So I think that's what we need to tell the parents.

[Peter Sagal]

You're not alone.

[Alex Horton]

We can help you out.

[NPR Sponsor Announcer]

If a flexible schedule would help you, visit betterhelp.com NPR for 10% off your first month of online therapy. This message comes from @&t. America's First Network is also its fastest and most Reliable based on RootMetrics United States Root Score Report 1H 2025 tested with best commercially available smartphones on three national mobile networks across all available network types. Your experiences may vary. RootMetrics rankings are not an endorsement of AT&T. When you compare, there's no comparison. AT&T.

[NPR Promo Announcer]

This message comes from NPR sponsor Adobe introducing the all new Adobe Acrobat studio. Now with AI powered PDF spaces need to turn 100 pages of market research into 5 insights with the click templates for a sales proposal that'll close that deal or an AI specialist to tailor the tone of your market report. You can do all that with the all new Adobe Acrobat Studio. Learn [e-mail] do that with Acrobat. This message comes from Grammarly from emails to reports and project proposals, it's hard to meet the demands of today's competing priorities without some help. Grammarly is the essential AI communication assistant that boosts your productivity at work so you can get more of what you need done faster. Just a few clicks can tailor your tone and writing so you come across exactly as you intend to get time back to focus on your high impact work. Download Grammarly for [e-mail] podcast that's Grammarly.com podcast.

[Terry Gross]

Let's get back to my interview with Alex Horton, a Washington Post national security reporter. He was the lead reporter on the story he broke with his colleague Ellen Nakashima last Friday about the US Military strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug smuggling boat in early September. After nine of the 11 people on board were killed, two survivors were in the water clinging to the wreckage. They were killed in a subsequent strike. According to Horton's reporting, the admiral who gave the command to kill the survivors was in compliance with Defense Secretary Pete Hexath's order to kill all the people aboard. The order was issued before the attack. We recorded our interview yesterday morning. Later in the day, President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hexseth commented on the story in a Cabinet meeting. Horton returned to Fresh Air this morning so I could ask him about his reaction to what they said. Well, let's hear what Trump and Hecseth had to say at yesterday's Cabinet meeting. Let's start with Hecseth. Here's his comment now.

[Pete Hegseth]

The first couple of strikes, as you would, as any leader would want, you want to own that responsibility. So I said, I'm going to be the one to make the corporate call after getting all the information and make sure it's the right strike. That was September 2nd. There's a lot of intelligence that goes into that, building, that case and understanding a lot of people providing information. I watched that first strike live. As you can imagine, at the Department of War, we got a lot of things to do. So I didn't stick around for the hour and two hours, whatever, where all the sensitive site exploitation digitally occurs. So I moved on to my next meeting. A couple of hours later, I learned that that commander had made the. Which he had the complete authority to do. And by the way, Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the.

[Alex Horton]

Boat and eliminate the threat.

[Pete Hegseth]

He sunk the boat. Sunk the boat and eliminated the threat. And he was the right call. We have his back. And the American people are safer because narco terrorists know you can't bring drugs through the water. And eventually on land, if necessary, to the American people, we will eliminate that threat, and we're proud to do it. So you didn't see any survivors?

[Alex Horton]

To be clear, after that first round.

[Pete Hegseth]

I did not personally see survivors, but I stand because the thing was on fire. It was exploded in fire smoke.

[Alex Horton]

You can't see anything.

[Pete Hegseth]

You got digital. This is called the fog of war. This is what you and the press don't understand. You sit in your air conditioned offices or up on Capitol Hill and you nitpick and you plant fake stories in the Washington Post about kill everybody phrases on anonymous sources, not based in anything, not based in any truth at all. And then you want to throw up really irresponsible terms about American heroes, about the judgment that they made. I wrote a whole book on this topic. Because of what politicians and the press does to war fighters, President Trump has empowered commanders, commanders to do what is necessary, which is dark and difficult things in the dead of night, on behalf of the American people, we Support them, and we will stop the poisoning of the American people.

[Terry Gross]

Okay, that was Pete Hexseth yesterday at a Cabinet meeting with President Trump. So he attacked the Washington Post reporting. I'm assuming he's referring to the article that you were the lead reporter of last Friday about the strike. Has he singled out any facts that you reported in that investigative article as untrue? Yeah.

[Alex Horton]

You know, the Pentagon and the White House have contended that Hegseth did not say in so many words to. To kill everyone on the boat before the first strike occurred. But everything else, they've essentially corroborated our reporting. This bit about Hegseth not being around for the second strike, you know, that was our understanding and belief, but we didn't have enough reporting to put that in the story the first time. But he confirmed that he was out of the room when Admiral Bradley made the decision to strike the two people in the water. And we reported as such that Bradley made that call himself and ordered that strike. Our reporting was that Hegseth made it clear to Admiral Bradley that he wanted to kill everyone in the boat. So what our reporting says is Bradley executed that first strike, and then minutes later, when it was clear there were survivors, ordered a second strike to comply with that intent to kill everyone on board.

[Terry Gross]

And do you stand by the fact that he did say kill them all?

[Alex Horton]

Yes. We don't know his exact verbiage, but that was his message to folks like Admiral Bradley.

[Terry Gross]

Does it make sense to you that Heseth would leave without seeing the final results of the strike because he has a busy job and needed to go to a meeting?

[Alex Horton]

He is right that he has a busy job and there's a lot to do. What he's talking about is what we reported, too, that everyone believed that the strike was a lethal success, and they did. The original intent, which was to kill them. And since the boat was on fire and, you know, obscured what was happening there that I think, you know, based on, folks I've spoken to, that people just assumed that the mission was over. There was nothing else to do. So what it sounds like is he watched it, he saw it, it was on fire, he believed it was mission accomplished, and he went on with his day.

[Terry Gross]

Well, let's move on to what President Trump said at the Cabinet meeting yesterday. So here's President Trump as far as.

[Donald Trump]

The attack is concerned. I didn't, you know, I still haven't gotten a lot of information because I rely on Pete, but to me, it was an attack. It wasn't one strike. Two strikes, three strikes. Somebody asked me a question about the second strike. I didn't know about the second strike. I didn't know about anything about people. I wasn't involved in it. I knew they took out a vote. But I would say this. They had a strike. I hear the gentleman that was in charge of that is extraordinary, extraordinary person. Let Pete speak about him. But Pete was satisfied. Pete didn't know about second attack having to do with two people. And I guess Pete would have to speak to it. I can say this. I want those boats taken out, and if we have to, we'll attack on land also, just like we attack on sea.

[Terry Gross]

So that was President Trump yesterday speaking at a Cabinet meeting. So he said he hadn't gotten a lot of information. He's the commander in chief. Shouldn't he be, like, demanding a detailed briefing right afterwards? I mean, he's not a passive recipient of these things.

[Alex Horton]

I mean, it really depends on how this was packaged for everyone. You know, when a mission like this happens, there's the after action review, and a lot of times it's a very short and succinct summary of what happened. And it could be that when this was rolled up for Hegseth review or for Trump's review, if it even went to the White House, would say something to the effect of, you know, on September 2nd, the task force carried out a mission targeting one vessel with 11 crew, 11 crew KIA, with four weapons released. It might say something to that effect. Does it go into a complete narrative of the decision making? Maybe and maybe not. So it could be that they didn't understand, you know, the finer details of the events, just that the overall ending was the same of 11 people were killed. And that's what Trump put on Truth Social later that day was 11 people killed. And that is an accurate summary of what happened. Didn't get into how they got there, but that is true.

[Terry Gross]

It's my understanding that the policy on survivors changed after the first attack on Venezuelan boats in early September. When did it change and how did it change?

[Alex Horton]

We don't know, and we're still trying to figure that out. We reported in our first story that there was a greater emphasis in planning, in strikes to account for the possibility of survivors after that first strike. But we don't know who directed it and what form it took. But we, we do know that it, you know, later on in other strikes, it led to a rescue mission to recover two survivors. I think just as likely, and maybe even more likely, is they didn't think clearly enough through the process to account for survivors, because they were confident that when you hit an unarmored, essentially a fishing boat at sea with a missile, that, that everyone's going to die. But here's the very first strike and that didn't happen. So I think what is pretty possible here is they regrouped after the first strike was over and everyone was dead. And they said, perhaps we should account for this in our planning. To what do we do if there's a survivor? What are some of the things we need to just be more deliberate about that? I think that's probably the more likely event is they realized that this was a potential gap in their planning and they addressed it after that.

[Terry Gross]

So there are people in Congress, the military, legal experts, former jags, thinking that this attack wasn't legal. And there's a debate between whether it was a war crime or murder, whether it's a war offense or a criminal offense. So how significant is that, the difference between those two?

[Alex Horton]

It's pretty significant. And it has to be one or the other. It can't be both, really.

Just because you use the military doesn't mean whoever you're attacking is a combatant or a lawful target. You have to be attacking other combatants. So that's one thing to underline is just because the US Military was involved doesn't mean it automatically is in this basket of permissible or impermissible conduct in military operations. It would be the same thing if they shot protesters in downtown la. They're not lawful military targets and you can't use them that way. Then the question becomes, well, is it this other thing? Are they saying that they're fighting a group of combatants and they're really just killing civilians who are criminals? You know, I'm not a legal expert and I don't know what venue this would be discussed, but these are the questions that the Hill and others are trying to ascertain of, you know, where do we go from here? Who's culpable and for what?

[Terry Gross]

So Admiral Bradley is a former head of jsoc, the Joint Special Operations Command, whose work includes the military's most sensitive and dangerous missions. So you'd think that he would know what is a legal and illegal order.

[Alex Horton]

Yes.

[Terry Gross]

And you'd also think he'd know that you're not supposed to obey an illegal command.

[Alex Horton]

During that operation, he was operating in the position of Joint Special Operations Commander. Since then, he has been promoted to the four star position of Special Operations Commander, which is above what he was doing before. So now he oversees all matters of special operations within the military. But an important point about his background is a couple things. One, he's in the Navy, right? So he is attuned and has the cultural and institutional fluency of what you do in a maritime situation. It's part of the culture. I was in the Army. I didn't know this stuff. I was a land guy, he's a sea guy. He would understand this much better when it comes to the maritime restrictions and legalities of who you can strike and when you can strike them in the water. The second part of that though, is throughout his Navy career, he came through that Navy SEAL pipeline. You know, he was a member of Seal Team 6, you know, the same group that carried out the mission. So his, his career has been defined, you know, by two decades of, of low intensity conflict against insurgents who are often fighting in austere environments and fighting in a very specific way. And you know, I've speak, I've spoken to some military lawyers about this. Of, you know, the idea that I mentioned before about being on land is a lot more permissible when you can re attack somebody. You have to wonder how much of Iraq and Afghanistan and Syria and any number of other conflicts that the US has been in over the last two decades, how much of that understanding and that finesse of dealing with it in that way has seeped into the rest of the military.

[Terry Gross]

It sounds as if Hexath might be trying to blame Bradley for what happened as opposed to taking response any responsibility for it while praising Bradley at the same time. Let me read the social media post that he wrote on Monday of this week. Let's make one thing crystal clear. Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and has my 100% support. I stand by him and the combat decisions he's made on the September 2nd mission and all others. Since America is fortunate to have such men protecting us. When this Department of War says we have the back of our warriors, we, we mean it. Okay, so it's a very praiseworthy thing to say of Bradley, but it's also blaming him.

[Alex Horton]

He stands behind him, but he wants to footstep that. Admiral Bradley was the one who took that second strike. And by the way, this is something we articulated pretty carefully and clearly in the story that Bradley on his own determined he was going to take that second strike. But his justification and the framing in his mind was he was going to fulfill the original order that EXITH had.

[Terry Gross]

Getting back to the two survivors of the first attack on a boat from Venezuela allegedly carrying narcotics Allegedly fentanyl. Do you think that that puts the US Military at risk? Like, if we can kill two survivors against our own rules of engagement? Are survivors of an attacked boat that is shipwrecked, an American boat, are they more likely to be killed? With the US Setting the example that it's okay, and I'm asking you this, both as a journalist, but also as a former member of the military in.

[Alex Horton]

Iraq, you know, I think it's a bit hypothetical. I mean, there's reasons why you conduct yourself in a professional manner in a war, and you do that not because it's the right thing. But, you know, the US as always, and not perfectly, though, has tried to set a different standard that is more than the adversaries like Russia and China and Iran that, you know, we, we have a tough military, we have a lethal military, we will kill you with force. But when a hurricane comes, we're going to help you out, too. Right? And setting the difference in distinction of, of what a world leader is and how it conducts itself is also just a good example to set. Because in a conf. Say, with China, if you, if you put torpedoes into 10 boats and, and in all 10 boats, there were, there were Chinese sailors in the water, and the next order was to strafe them with fighter jets and kill them without any ability for them to be rescued or patched up or wounded or whatever. If China sees that, it says, well, why do we have to follow the rules? If the US doesn't do it, then it doesn't matter what we do. And there is this, in warfare, there is sometimes this tit for tat that they do it, and therefore the gloves are off. And that could happen in small ways and in big ways. And you do not want to be an American sailor who goes down with the ship and see a Chinese plane coming and be like, man, I really wish my buddies in the other squadron didn't shoot up those survivors, because that pilot's going to feel a whole different set of ways about whether he can kill me or not. That is a concern. I mean, it's still hypothetical, but this is why we want to have these guardrails in warfare, so we can set an example. But also we need to be able to say we're doing the right thing, that we're following orders that are lawful, we have confidence in our leaders, and we will execute those orders.

[Terry Gross]

If you're just joining us, my guest is Alex Horton. He's a Washington Post national security reporter. We'll be right back. This is FRESH air.

[NPR Sponsor Announcer]

This message comes from Sports in America with David Greene. The world of sports is filled with stories that go beyond the highlights of the game. Join former Morning Edition host David Green for Sports in America from WHYY and prx, a weekly show featuring in depth conversations with star athletes, coaches, parents and the millions of fans whose lives are touched by the game. Hear about the personal and transformative moments that make fans want to stand up and cheer each week on Sports in America With David Green. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

[Peter Sagal]

Hey, it's Peter Sagal. It has been a pretty good year for me. I got my wordle streak up to 72 and I won a free coffee for guessing the number of beans in the jar. But for npr, not so much.

[Pete Hegseth]

Today is the first day in the.

[Alex Horton]

Entire history of NPR without federal funding.

[Peter Sagal]

Throw a bone our way, can't you? Make your [e-mail] and thanks.

[Terry Gross]

So who might be liable for violating the law of armed conflict or liable for murder?

[Alex Horton]

That's something that really needs to be unspooled. The fair and accurate answer is I don't know. I can tell you what what law of experts have sort of speculated on, but they still need more information because the other things that matter have consequence to that answer. Did Admiral Bradley misinterpret what Agseth said? Did Bradley figure that that boat was seaworthy or they needed to attack the drugs and the people were just collateral rather than trying to kill the people themselves? Is another thing. During the ISIS war, there was a permissible target because fuel was being sold to finance terror operations that you could strike fuel depots. And if civilians or others got caught up in it, they would do a calculated assessment. But there is a world where some civilians would be acceptable to risk in something like that if they determine it was worth it. So you have to determine what you're shooting at and whether that was the point of shooting in the first place. But we need Bradley and we need exiles to make that clear. You know, whether that's on the Hill.

[Terry Gross]

And does it still get back to that? The order was ambiguous. It didn't say if there were survivors after the shipwreck. Shoot them too.

[Alex Horton]

It could be. I mean, we do not know if that original strike had a contingency or planning on what to do in these kinds of operations. Sometimes it's detailed, but sometimes it's not as detailed as you would like. But there is a line or some sort of mention of what do you do if this happens. And one thing that should or could have happened is what do we do if someone survives a strike and if they're 10ft from shore or if they're 100 miles from shore, does it matter what we do? Do we just let them go back to what they're doing?

[Terry Gross]

Or you mean like the ones that's in global waters? I mean, like international waters.

[Alex Horton]

You know, we didn't, we didn't say where this was. You know, we have a, we have a decent idea. We said it was off the coast of Trinidad. But I'll tell you, I think where the strike likely occurred, it would make getting back to Venezuela probably an impossible task. There was not a clear option for them just to go home. So that matters, too, whether they're going to live to fight another day. But, but like I said before, a lot of this is besides the fact that the administration is the only one with confidence saying that these guys are part of an armed conflict with the United States and intend on doing the United States homeland harm and therefore lethal military forces authorized. The way this has always happened is the Coast Guard has interdicted drugs because it's illegal and it shouldn't happen. And they board the vessels and they take the drugs and then they arrest them for prosecution either in the United States or their home countries or another country. That's the way it's always been done, that this is a criminal enterprise, but it is a law enforcement matter, not a US Military, as you put it, kinetic strike matter. Until now.

[Terry Gross]

This is what the six Democratic lawmakers warned about in their video. Was it last week or two weeks ago about the oath that members of the military take, saying they are required to decline orders that are illegal?

[Alex Horton]

Yeah. I mean, this certainly could fall under that. Like I said, I'm not the adjudicator. I will say in the Department of Defense's manual has lines in there that says you should not follow an order that is illegal. And the example it gives is firing on someone that is shipwrecked. It just so happens that what we're talking about is an example. But then it just goes back to were they shipwrecked or were they not?

[Terry Gross]

Trump has threatened to recall Democratic Senator Mark Kelly to active duty in the military and then have him court martialed.

[Alex Horton]

Yes. To put him on active duty, to try him on military court. Yes. To say he has incited the military and he needs to come back, come back and face discipline under military law.

[Terry Gross]

And what he said was that you have to follow the rules. I mean, that was the gist of what he said.

[Alex Horton]

Yeah, that's Right. I mean, the message they delivered was, you know, there is a responsibility for everyone to follow lawful orders, and when the time comes for an illegal order, to disobey it. And that's not a controversy. I mean, it is because it's political. And these are Democrats. This is just the age we live in. But, you know, when you strip all that away, that is what you expect US Service members to do.

[Terry Gross]

So do you think that these attacks on people who Trump is labeling as narco terrorists is part of Trump's efforts to oust Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro?

[Alex Horton]

You know, it's hard to say what the connective tissue is between these missions and, like, the larger military buildup, you know, because, as I mentioned, like, 99.9 of the forces that are in the Caribbean are not striking the boats. This is done by a very small, select, elite crew of targeters and intelligence operatives. So then it becomes, okay, well, if they're not doing anything about the boats or maybe they're supporting it in some ways, like intel or whatever, what are they actually accomplishing in. In the Caribbean? And then there's this priority that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump, you know, going back to his first administration, you know, they have been fixated on Nicolas Maduro and getting him out of power. You know, he's backed by Russia. You know, the US Considers him an adversary in the region in a point of instability, and they want to see him out of office. And they've said as much in the last few months. So these two things are kind of related. But, you know, you have to take a step back and say, well, why are they related? Because Trump talked about every boat has, like, so many thousands of deaths. What he means is fentanyl. These boats are not carrying fentanyl.

[Terry Gross]

They're carrying cocaine.

[Alex Horton]

They're carrying cocaine. Fentanyl precursors come from China, they go to Mexico, where fentanyl's produced, and then from Mexico, they go to the United States and other markets. Cocaine comes from two key places, Ecuador and Colombia. And cocaine that comes from Venezuela is, if it's not very small numbers produced in the country, it's coming from those two. Those two countries.

As part of an elaborate trafficking operation. But Venezuela is not a drug player. Every official I've spoken to about this, with experience in the region says Venezuela is not on the radar for any kind of considerable drug trafficking. And the stuff they do have, a lot of it goes to Europe, not the United States. And they certainly don't do anything with fentanyl. So this thing that where Trump is doing, the connective tissue between drug deaths are happening and they're out of control, that is fentanyl to Venezuela, to Maduro, orchestrating or supporting drug traffickers that help give fentanyl and other drugs to the United States. They have made that line go all through those points and some of it is very tenuous.

Because they're relying on the fact that they're trying to kill Americans intentionally. Right. And therefore we're in armed conflict and they're backed by Maduro. And therefore Maduro is an adversary that we have to do something about.

[Terry Gross]

Yeah. Trump has accused Maduro of being the head of the Cartel de los Souls, which the State Department has designated as a terrorist organization. What do you know about the cartel?

[Alex Horton]

There's not a ton that's known about them. I mean, the origins of the group are people in the government who had some sort of kind of handshake, wink, wink deal that would engage in illicit activity to include drug trafficking. But as part of a formal organization. There is a lot of discussion about this on whether this group is an actual group, is it a real thing or sort of this sort of collective of high ranking people and criminals that's just sort of an amorphous thing and not like Islamic State or Al Qaeda or even like the Sinaloa cartel that has a structure as a boss and it has they have economics on the payroll, they have scientists and they have distribution networks. And they're essentially a company. This is not that. As far as we can tell, they are not in the same realm of any of these groups. I mentioned terrorists or drug cartels in particular.

[Terry Gross]

If you're just joining us, my guest is Alex Horton. He's a Washington Post national security reporter. We'll be right back. This is FRESH air. On the next through line from npr.

[NPR Promo Announcer]

The mother of Thanksgiving.

[Alex Horton]

If every state should join in Union Thanksgiving on the 24th of this month, would it not be a renewed pledge of love and loyalty to the Constitution of the United States?

[NPR Promo Announcer]

Listen to Throughline in the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[It's Been a Minute Podcast Host]

This week on Up First, NPR's morning news podcast as we learn more about the Trump administration's deadly strikes against alleged drug boats. Senators from both parties have questions. Will they get answers? We'll keep you updated. And we're following the latest efforts by the president to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Listen to up first for what you need to know to start your day.

[Alex Horton]

You care about what's happening in the world. Stay informed with NPR's State of the World podcast. In just a few minutes, we take you to stories around the globe. You might hear the latest developments in world conflicts or about what global events mean. For the price of your coffee, listen to the State of the World podcast from npr.

[Terry Gross]

Trump has made it clear that he's willing to use military force against Venezuela on land as well as sea, in the name of the war on narco terrorists. What can you tell us about Trump's threats to continue this war on land? We know there's already warships off the coast of Venezuela, but he's willing to use military force. Does that mean he wants to get us into war with Venezuela? And how can he do that without informing Congress? Commander in chief do without consent.

[Alex Horton]

I mean, the commander in chief at this moment can carry on what he has justified as actions taken against an armed group and combatants. That's the way he's described some of these drug trafficking organizations. So, I mean, there's a Chinese menu somewhere in the Pentagon of who to attack and where. That matters. On Trump's preference, Right. If he wants to hit these cartels at more meaningful way, like a lab or a facility or storage place, perhaps that is one option rather than striking military forces in Venezuela, you know, an air defense system or military barracks, that would be far different than hitting a drug lab or hitting a distribution point. If President Trump wanted to attack military targets in a limited campaign that ramped up, he is certainly able to do that with what he has in the region. Now, if he wants to strike cartel and drug type groups in Venezuela, short of hitting military targets, he can certainly do that. He has the capability, and it seems like he has the desire to. Whether that all comes to play is anyone's guess, but the pieces are in place for something like that to happen.

[Terry Gross]

Is narco terrorism possibly a pretext to justify his campaign against Maduro? And are there other reasons he wants Maduro out?

[Alex Horton]

You know, I can't get into the president's head, but, you know, we do know. If his stated goal is to. And Hegseth's goal is to adversely impact the ability of drug traffickers to move product.

Venezuela is like, probably like among the last on the list in the region. You would, you would focus on. Because Colombia and Ecuador or US Allies send the vast majority of cocaine up, and not just in the Caribbean, they send it in the Pacific. So if your stated goal was to do drugs and you had no designs about Venezuela or regime change or anything like that, you would construct an operation focused solely on the Pacific and maybe a little bit of the Caribbean to get your money's worth of traffickers. The volume of drugs and the volume of ships is in the Pacific. And a few strikes have happened there, but not all of them, and certainly not some of the more consequential ones like this first one.

[Terry Gross]

So one of President Trump's comments yesterday at the Cabinet meeting was that if we have to attack on land, we would. And so how close are we to going to war with Venezuela?

[Alex Horton]

I think strikes in Venezuela are. You know.

It'S hard to say if it's becoming more or less likely as time goes on and the diplomatic talks go the direction. But from his comments, he didn't make it clear whether he was interested in attacking land targets for drug traffickers or Venezuelan military targets. Those are. Those are two different things that would invite very different responses from the Venezuelan government of whether they are in actual war with the United States. You know, strikes like that may be an off ramp for further action. Right. Like sort of how when the US And Israel shot down drones and missiles heading to Israel, that was an off ramp that allowed Iran, after strikes, hit their country to take shots and sort of publicly settle the score. This could be something similar for the US And Venezuela that we'll attack bad guys in the area and we'll get what we want, will have the public narrative of taking some targets out, but we're not going to blow up military targets, so just let us do it and we both get what we want.

[Terry Gross]

So while we're talking about trying to.

Basically get rid of a president that Trump doesn't like, Trump has pardoned a former president of Honduras. He was convicted last year of working for cartels to flood the US with cocaine, of conspiring to possess destructive devices, including machine guns, and taking bribes during his campaign from Joaquin Guzman, the former leader of the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico, he was known as El Chapo. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison in federal District court in Manhattan. And Trump just pardoned him. Like, I don't understand how he's going after allegedly carrying narcotics, allegedly narco terrorists, allegedly carrying fentanyl, when it's probably not fentanyl, it's probably cocaine. And yet somebody who was Sentenced in the U.S. in Manhattan, he was sentenced to 45 years in prison.

[Alex Horton]

So how do we square that?

[Terry Gross]

Yeah, how do we square that?

[Alex Horton]

Well, I mean, when you said about probably not fentanyl, I mean, I would say what they're carrying is more likely marshmallows than fentanyl. That's how unlikely. It's fentanyl.

[Terry Gross]

All right.

[Alex Horton]

You know, it's cocaine. You don't smuggle cherries out of Iowa. You smuggle corn. Right.

[Terry Gross]

It's that obvious.

[Alex Horton]

It's that obvious. This is what they do. This is the region. So how do you square these two things that the message from Trump and the rest of the government is we are at war with drug traffickers and cartels and people who are intent on doing us harm by sending deadly products to the United States. And then you see this deal with someone who's convicted in a US Court of these crimes for a very long time, and you contrast that with killing these people in these boats that have the smallest amount of drugs you could get to transport to effect. I mean, we're talking on fractions of a percent of the trafficking volume that comes in. We're talking tons and tons and hundreds of tons of cocaine, maybe even thousands of tons of cocaine a year. You know, these are drops in the bucket that you're focused on. But meanwhile, you know, the big fish is getting another deal entirely. So, you know, I don't know how it squares. I don't know what their relationship or any sort of deal that was made. But there is, you know, we are looking for more consistency in the Trumps, what they describe as a hard line approach to drug trafficking.

[Terry Gross]

I want to thank you so much for your reporting and for being with us today.

[Alex Horton]

Yeah, I really appreciate it.

[Terry Gross]

Alex Horton is a Washington Post national security reporter focused on the military. Our interview was recorded yesterday with an update we recorded today. Tomorrow on FRESH air, our guest will be George Clooney. He became famous at 34. Late enough, he says that he learned how to live before he learned how to be famous. His new character, J. Kelly, wasn't so lucky. He'll talk about playing a movie star who has the fame part down, but the father, partner, friend part, not so much. I hope you'll join us.

FRESH air's executive producer is Danny Miller. Our technical director and engineer is Audrey Bentham. Our managing producer is Sam Brigger. Our interviews and reviews are produced and edited by Phyllis Myers, Ann Marie Boldonado, Lauren Krenzel, Teresa Madden, Monique Nazareth, Thea Chaloner, Susan Yakundi and Anna Bauman. Our digital media producer is Molly CB Nesburg. Our consulting visual producer is Hope Wilson. Roberto Shorrock directs the show. Our co host is Tanya Mosley. I'm Terry Grove.

[It's Been a Minute Podcast Host]

So I just want to check in really quick. Are you okay or are you suffering from sleep deprivation? A stack of bills or political propaganda. If so, you may be stuck in the parent trap. On the It's Been a Minute podcast, we're diving head first into the anxieties of modern parenting and how that trickles out to all of us. Even if you don't have children, come find some relief. Listen to the It's Been a Minute podcast on the NPR app, or wherever you get your podcasts on.

[Peter Sagal]

Wait, wait, don't tell me famous actors remember their days of obscurity. Like when Pedro Pascal remembered the stress of being a waiter, the logistical labor of meeting everyone's needs in the right manner. The you know, the actors 1. The water act 2.

[Alex Horton]

The drink.

[Peter Sagal]

Listen to Wait, Wait. In the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.