Since September 2025, the United States military has conducted more than 60 strikes on suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific, resulting in over 220 fatalities.
Under the military campaign known as Operation Southern Spear, the administration of former President Donald Trump has declared a crusade against “narcoterrorism.” However, official disclosures regarding the identities of those killed, the evidence against them, and the criteria for target selection have remained largely opaque.
In this investigative report, Fault Lines scrutinizes the assertions of the administration regarding Operation Southern Spear by revealing the personal stories of those targeted and the intelligence used to justify lethal force.
Through the accounts of families seeking answers, witness testimonies, physical evidence, and insights from legal experts, Fault Lines evaluates the legality of the strikes, their actual impact on the narcotics trade, and the mechanisms of accountability for those deceased.
Spanning from coastal fishing communities in the Caribbean to the halls of power in Washington, D.C., this examination delves into a military campaign conducted largely beyond public scrutiny, questioning who is being killed in America’s new maritime conflict and why.
Published On 2 Sep 2026