Washington — The White House said Monday that a Navy admiral acted “from within.” “His authority and the law” When he ordered a second strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea in a US military operation in September, it came Under partisan scrutiny.
White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt provided justification for the September 2 strike, with lawmakers announcing there would be a congressional review of the strike. American military strikes Against ships suspected of drug trafficking in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. The lawmakers cited a published report stating that Defense Minister Pete Hegseth He issued a verbal order for a second raid, which killed the survivors on the boat.
Navy Vice Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley, who Levitt said ordered the second strike, is expected to give a classified briefing Thursday to lawmakers overseeing the military.
Leavitt, in her statements to reporters, did not doubt a report published by the Washington Post that there were survivors after the initial strike. Its explanation came later President Donald Trump He said the previous day that he “didn’t want that – not a second strike” when asked about the incident.
“Secretary Hegseth has authorized Admiral Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes,” Leavitt said. “Admiral Bradley acted well within his authority and the law, directing the engagement to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated.”
Late Monday, Hegseth posted: “Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and has my support 100%. I stand by him and the combat decisions he made – on the September 2 mission and every other mission since.”
A month after the raid, Bradley was promoted from commander of the Joint Special Operations Command to commander of the US Special Operations Command.
Concerns about the Trump administration’s military strikes against alleged drug smuggling boats have been growing in Congress, but the details of this subsequent strike surprised many lawmakers from both parties and raised stark questions about the legitimacy of the attacks and overall strategy in the region, especially toward Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Lawmakers said they didn’t know if a Washington Post report last week was true, and some Republicans were skeptical. However, they said reports of attacks on survivors of the initial missile strike raise serious concerns and merit further scrutiny.
The White House intervened after Trump forcefully defended Hegseth on Sunday.
“Pete said he did not order the killing of these two men,” Trump said. “And I believe him,” he added.
Leavitt said Hegseth spoke with members of Congress who may have expressed some concerns about the reports over the weekend.
General Dan Kane, Over the weekend, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff spoke with two Republican lawmakers and two Democratic lawmakers who lead the Senate and House Armed Services committees. Kaine’s office said in a statement that he reaffirmed his “confidence in experienced leaders at all levels.”
The statement added that the call focused on “addressing the intent and legitimacy of the missions aimed at disrupting illicit trafficking networks that threaten the security and stability of the Western Hemisphere.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Monday generally defended the operations, echoing the Trump administration’s position that they are necessary to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the United States.
Thune said that congressional committees would look into what happened. “I don’t think you want to draw any conclusions or conclusions until you get all the facts,” he said of the September 2 strike. “We’ll see where they lead.”
After the newspaper’s report, Hegseth said Friday on Channel
“Our current operations in the Caribbean are legal under US and international law, and all actions comply with the law of armed conflict — and are approved by the best military and civilian lawyers, up and down the chain of command,” Hegseth wrote.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called Hegseth a “national embarrassment” for his response to critics. Schumer demanded that Hegseth release the video of the strike and testify under oath about what happened.
Republican Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, pledged that his committee’s investigation would be done “by the numbers.”
He said: “We will find the truth on the ground,” adding that the repercussions of the report are “serious accusations.”
Sen. Jack Reed, the committee’s top Democrat, who also called on the administration to release video of the strike, said its investigation would begin with “briefings on what actually happened” from the officials involved.
“If they did nothing wrong, this video should completely exonerate them. Why don’t they release it?” he asked.
In the House, Rep. Mike Rogers, Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said he was “satisfied” after a conversation with Hegseth about the attack, but he also wanted to hear from Bradley.
“We will have the all-clear on Thursday afternoon,” Rogers said.
Trump met later Monday with his national security team to discuss ongoing operations and potential next steps against Venezuela.
The US administration says the strikes target drug cartels, some of which it claims are under Maduro’s control. Trump is also considering whether to launch strikes on the Venezuelan mainland.
Trump confirmed on Sunday that he recently spoke by phone with Maduro, but declined to give details of the conversation.
Speaking to supporters in Caracas on Monday, Maduro said US pressure had “tested” the country but that Venezuelans were ready to “defend it and lead it to the path of peace.”
“We have lived through 22 weeks of aggression that can only be described as psychological terrorism,” Maduro said.
The September strike was one of a series of strikes carried out by the US military in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific, where Trump ordered a build-up of US military force. A fleet of warships near Venezuelaincluding The largest American aircraft carrier. More than 80 people were killed in the raids.
The Venezuelan National Assembly announced the launch of an investigation into the deadly attacks. The announcement by the association’s president, Jorge Rodriguez, on Sunday was the first time a Maduro government official had openly acknowledged the deaths of Venezuelans in the months-long U.S. military operation.
Rodriguez, Maduro’s chief negotiator, said a group of lawmakers would meet to investigate “the serious events that led to the deaths of Venezuelans in Caribbean waters.”
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Garcia Cano reported from Caracas, Venezuela. Associated Press writers Stephen Groves, Lisa Mascaro and Konstantin Torobin contributed to this report.