(MENAFN) The U.S. military carried out a lethal strike on Tuesday against a vessel engaged in narcotrafficking in international waters close to Venezuela’s coast, killing six men onboard, President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social.

This latest action raises the total fatalities to 27 in a series of U.S. military attacks targeting suspected drug trafficking ships near Venezuela since September.

Trump stated that U.S. intelligence had verified the vessel was navigating a known narcoterrorist trafficking route and linked to illicit drug networks.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration alerted Congress via a memo that the United States is engaged in a "non-international armed conflict" with drug cartels it has designated as terrorist organizations, declaring cartel members "unlawful combatants."

The memo did not specify which cartels are targeted nor clarify the criteria the U.S. government will use to determine whether an individual is sufficiently connected to a cartel to be subject to military action.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly condemned the U.S., accusing Washington of exploiting cartel threats as a cover for regime change efforts and increasing its military footprint in Latin America.

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