Part 4/13:
Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed Trump's statement, describing the action as a "lethal strike against a designated narco organization." Pentagon officials confirmed that the target belonged to TDA, a Venezuelan criminal network previously designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. earlier this year. The significance of this operation lies in its deviation from the Coast Guard’s cautious interdiction methods, which traditionally involve boarding vessels, demanding surrender, and risking lives. Instead, the strike obliterated the vessel outright—an explicit sign of the U.S. adopting a more aggressive military approach.