It is some what official now…..our intervention in Venezuela now has an official name…..Operation Southern Spear.
The naming took place with Hogsbreath and his evil smile….
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced a new US military campaign, dubbed “Operation Southern Spear,” which he said was ordered by President Trump.
Hegseth’s announcement came as US officials revealed that the US bombed another alleged drug-running boat in the region on Monday, marking the 20th strike and the 21st boat the US military has blown up since the campaign began in early September. The officials said that the latest strike killed four “narco-terrorists,” a term the Trump administration uses to justify the extrajudicial executions at sea.
According to numbers released by the Trump administration, the latest boat strike brings the total number of people killed in the campaign to 79. The Pentagon has offered no evidence to back up its claims that the boats it has been bombing were carrying drugs, and it has also admitted to Congress that it doesn’t know the identities of the people who have been killed.
The US has been facing growing criticism of the bombing campaign, which is clearly illegal under domestic and international law, but Hegseth’s statement signals the strikes will increase.
“Today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR,” Hegseth wrote on X. “Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and [US Southern Command], this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people. The Western Hemisphere is America’s neighborhood – and we will protect it.”
Hegseth’s statement and the new military operation could also signal a move toward war with Venezuela, as CBS News reported earlier in the day that he was involved in a briefing with President Trump on potential military operations in the South American country, including strikes on land.
(antiwar.com)
With an official name comes with official plans…..
Senior military officials on Wednesday presented President Trump with options for potential military operations in Venezuela, including strikes on land, CBS News reported on Thursday.
The report, which cited White House officials familiar with the meeting, said that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine were involved in the briefing that presented potential options for the “coming days,” though no final decision was made.
The report comes after signs that the president was cooling on the idea of launching a war with Venezuela, though a US aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, and three US Navy destroyers, just arrived in the region, significantly bolstering US forces in the Caribbean.
The leaks to CBS about the briefing could be part of the psychological operation against Maduro aimed at pressuring him to voluntarily step down from power, though that’s unlikely to happen. The Wall Street Journal reported on November 5 that the president expressed reservations about attacking Venezuela and that he was content with slowly building up US forces in the region and continuing the illegal bombing campaign against alleged drug-running boats in the region.
The push toward a regime change war in Venezuela is being driven by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also serves as Trump’s national security advisor. Reports have said that Stephen Miller, the president’s senior domestic policy advisor, also favors war, but there are concerns within the administration that taking out Maduro could plunge Venezuela into chaos and lead to another migrant crisis, akin to what happened in Libya after Muammar Gaddafi was brutally killed during a US and NATO bombing campaign.
(antiwar.com)
Last week, ahead of a Senate vote on a bill to block Trump from starting a war with Venezuela without congressional authorization, Trump officials told lawmakers that they didn’t currently have plans to bomb the country and that they lacked the legal authorization to do so. But the administration also conveyed that they planned on getting a legal opinion from the Department of Justice to justify strikes in Venezuela, which would still be illegal without approval from Congress, per the Constitution.
Is all this a blind bluff?
What makes a small boat with people a narco-terrorist boat?
If these boats are transporting drugs then why not follow it to where it is dropping off the drugs and take out a lot more?
Why waste expensive missiles on a small boat?
Does anyone else see the folly in all this?
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
Trump is worried about all the south American countries being narcotics exporters to the usa- so how many other nations are also narco exporters to the usa
🌎 Global Sources of Narcotics to the USA
While South American countries like Colombia, Bolivia, and Venezuela are often identified as major drug-producing or drug-transit countries, the flow of illicit narcotics into the United States involves numerous other nations as well, including countries that supply precursor chemicals for synthetic drugs.
Based on official reports concerning major illicit drug-producing or drug-transit countries, the other major nations involved in the flow of narcotics or related chemicals to the U.S. include:
1. North and Central America
Mexico: Mexican Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) are widely considered the primary transporters and suppliers of most major illicit drugs, including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and especially fentanyl and its precursors, into the United States. Much of the fentanyl is synthesized in Mexico using precursor chemicals sourced globally.
Central American Countries: Nations like Guatemala and Honduras are often designated as major drug-transit countries due to their geographical position as a land bridge for drugs moving from South America to Mexico.
The Caribbean: Countries like the Dominican Republic and Haiti are often identified as major drug-transit countries, as the Caribbean remains a route for U.S.-bound drugs.
2. Asia
China (People’s Republic of China – PRC): The PRC is often cited as the primary source for precursor chemicals used to manufacture synthetic drugs, especially fentanyl and methamphetamine, which are then often trafficked through Mexico or other nations before reaching the U.S.
Afghanistan: Traditionally, Afghanistan has been a major source of the world’s opium and, consequently, heroin.
Myanmar (Burma): This country is also identified as a major drug-producing and transit country in Southeast Asia, particularly for synthetic drugs like methamphetamine.
India: India is emerging as a source for both finished fentanyl powder and fentanyl precursor chemicals.
In short, the illicit drug trade to the U.S. is a complex global network. While South America is key for cocaine production, Mexico is the dominant gateway for smuggling most drugs, including synthetic opioids made from precursors often originating in China.
So my question now is, “Is President Trump preparing for a GLOBAL war on the narcos or is he just going to concentrate on one or two here and there….????
A better question John is how many of those does the CIA fund? chuq
“Does anyone else see the folly in all this?” Apparently not.
I haven’t followed this to any extent, but the question that comes to my mind is if the “drug-runners” are aware of the chances that they will be blown out of the water by Trump, why continue? Of course, this is Trump’s end goal, but looking at it from the so-called drug-runner perspective, it does seem like they are tempting fate. And what if they are just fishermen?
Hmmm … a thought just occurred to me about this — perhaps the people in Venezuela are actually unaware that this is happening and that’s why they are continuing …?
Of course bottom line, it’s related to his beef with Maduro. IOW, any leader that doesn’t kiss Trump’s ass ….
My thoughts as well….fishermen….chuq