![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.azuse.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Drug-Boat-Struck-300x169.webp\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
As we all know, the current administration is taking a fairly hard line on drug smuggling craft, and blowing them out of the water. Despite those who claim “but they could just be fishing boats” (sorry, normal fishing boats carry actual fishing gear, aren’t powered by multiple large outboards, aren’t spotted with lots and lots of plastic wrapped bales instead of fishermen – you get the picture.)\u00a0 We’ve tagged what, 21 or 22 boats like that? in mid-smuggling.<\/p>\n
Me, I am perfectly good with leaving nothing but an oil slick and a few memories. I have advocated in the past for making dealers eat their own fentanyl – why would this be different? – but there are a few accepted conventions in combat, one of which is not executing enemy casualties out of hand. You may recall a fella named Calley who got himself in deep doodoo for that back in Vietnam. We got a bit perturbed when German SS troops executed\u00a0 84 of ours at a place called Malmady. Killing in an initial blitz or combat is OK. Killing helpless prisoners and injured is not. Not saying it hasn’t happened before, but doing so is a VERY good way to wind up spending some serious time in eastern Kansas. It’s cold there now.<\/p>\n
So now we get to the Washington Post report\u00a0 that SecDef Hegseth ordered a couple of drug-boat survivors from the first boat to be executed out of hand September 2d.<\/p>\n
The lawmakers said they did not know whether last week’s Washington Post report was true, and some Republicans were skeptical, but they said attacking survivors of an initial missile strike poses serious legal concerns.<\/p>\n
Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, when asked about a follow-up strike aimed at people no longer able to fight, said Congress does not have information that happened. He noted that leaders of the Armed Services Committee in both the House and Senate have opened investigations.\u00a0\u00a0AP<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Absolutely the right course of action – such an allegation can NOT be swept under the carpet. And, in the hoopla over senior Democrats telling troops to disobey illegal orders, this would be their validation: very few orders can be more illegal than “execute the survivors”.<\/p>\n
A first missile strike left two survivors, but a Special Operations commander overseeing the attack ordered a second strike to comply with Hegseth\u2019s instructions to \u201ckill everybody,\u201d according to the Post<\/em>, which cited officials with direct knowledge of the operation.<\/p>\n
The attack on September 2 was the first of more than a dozen attacks on alleged drug-running boats that have killed more than 80 people over the last three months.\u00a0\u00a0The Independent<\/a><\/p>\n
According to two individuals with direct knowledge of the operation \u2014 who, like five others in the report, spoke on condition of anonymity \u2014 the Special Operations commander overseeing the mission ordered a second strike specifically to comply with Hegseth\u2019s instructions. The survivors were killed in the water.Atlanta Black Star<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
If true, we may need a new SecDef (although most likely if there is blame to be assigned, we all know some poor service member like the commander will be allowed to fall on his sword instead.) But they need to get to the bottom of this allegation quickly… oh, and if the WaPo can’t back up their story, THEY need to suitably chastised. Mr. Trump himself very neatly avoided backing up Hegseth (“he said he didn’t do it” is a pretty thin affirmation) when asked. Mediaite<\/a><\/p>\n
I suspect his story isn’t going away quickly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"