US Military Pauses Drug-Boat Strikes After 67 Vessels Destroyed and 221 Killed
Updated
Updated · CNN · Jul 26
US Military Pauses Drug-Boat Strikes After 67 Vessels Destroyed and 221 Killed
3 articles · Updated · CNN · Jul 26
Summary
June 21 marked the last known strike in Operation Southern Spear, the longest pause yet in a campaign that has destroyed at least 67 suspected drug boats and killed at least 221 people since September 2025.
11 months into the operation, US law enforcement officials told CNN they are still unsure whether the strikes have made a lasting dent, and experts said trafficking networks typically adapt by shifting routes and methods.
Coast Guard data showed sea-borne cocaine seizures have declined in both the eastern Pacific and Caribbean since the strikes began, but officials cautioned that could reflect smugglers moving elsewhere rather than reduced flows.
The mission's official purpose remains classified, even as Southern Command says it is meant to disrupt cartel trafficking; questions have persisted because the strikes continued after the January 3 US raid that captured Nicolas Maduro.
Nearly 180,000 pounds of cocaine were seized by the DEA in the first half of 2026, underscoring experts' view that killing low-level boat crews is unlikely to disrupt broader drug supply chains.