WASHINGTON: US forces killed 14 people in strikes that destroyed four alleged drug-smuggling boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday, bringing the death toll from Washington&#39;s anti-narcotics campaign to at least 57. The United States began carrying out the strikes -- which experts say are illegal -- in early September, and has now destroyed at least 14 vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific. In three strikes carried out Monday in international waters, 14 &quot;narco-terrorists&quot; were killed and one survived, Hegseth said in a post on X. This was the deadliest single-day toll so far in the US campaign. &quot;The four vessels were known by our intelligence apparatus, transiting along known narco-trafficking routes, and carrying narcotics,&quot; he said. The Pentagon chief&#39;s post included video of the strikes, the first of which targeted two stationary boats that appeared to be moored together, and the other two on vessels that were speeding across open water. Hegseth said that US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) immediately started searching for the sole survivor of the strikes, and that Mexican authorities &quot;accepted the case and assumed responsibility for coordinating the rescue.&quot; He did not specify what happened to the survivor or if the person was found, and SOUTHCOM referred a question on the survivor to Mexico. Galapagos base? &quot;We will track them, we will network them, and then, we will hunt and kill them,&quot; Hegseth said of drug traffickers. But Washington has yet to provide evidence that its targets were smuggling drugs, and experts say the strikes are illegal even if they target known traffickers. The United States has carried out a major buildup of military forces in Latin America that it says is aimed at countering drug trafficking. It has deployed seven US Navy warships as well as F-35 stealth warplanes, and ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group to the region, which will bring with it a massive increase in firepower. The unusually large US military presence in the Caribbean is coming face to face with a massive hurricane that is churning across the region, requiring some assets to be moved to safety. Washington has also carried out multiple shows of force with B-52 and B-1B bombers flying near Venezuela&#39;s coast, the most recent of which took place on Monday. Regional tensions have flared as a result of the strikes and the military buildup, with Venezuela saying the United States is plotting to overthrow President Nicolas Maduro, who has accused Washington of &quot;fabricating a war.&quot; Ecuadoran President Daniel Noboa, a staunch US ally, meanwhile said Tuesday that his country could host a foreign military base in the Galapagos Islands that could be used to combat drug and fuel trafficking, as well as illegal fishing. Noboa did not specify which country could establish the base in Ecuador, a major hub for cocaine trafficking, but has talked of &quot;various countries,&quot; including the United States.

Americas

US strikes in the eastern Pacific destroyed four suspected drug-smuggling boats, killing 14 and raising the campaign’s toll to at least 57, provoking legal criticism and regional tensions as Washington expands military presence and rhetoric

US kills 14 in strikes on alleged Pacific drug boats

KUALA LUMPUR: Singapore&rsquo;s prison hanged a Malaysian drug trafficker Wednesday, marking the second execution in two weeks and raising the number of executions in the city-state to 12 this year despite pressure to abolish the death penalty. A Singapore anti-death penalty activist, Kirsten Han, confirmed that 38-year-old Pannir Selvam Pranthaman was executed at Changi Prison. Han, who is accompanying his family, said they have collected Pannir&rsquo;s belongings from the prison. Pannir was arrested in 2014 for having 52 grams (about 1.8 ounces) of heroin and sentenced to death in 2017. He was originally scheduled for execution in February but received a stay of execution due to pending legal matters. Malaysian police had interviewed Pannir on Sept. 27 when lawyers said he provided information about the people who had handed him the drugs. It raised hopes his execution would be postponed again for a new investigation. But Malaysia&rsquo;s home ministry said on Tuesday that Pannir didn&rsquo;t provide any new leads for police to conduct further probes. His execution came after the court rejected his final appeal and he failed to secure a presidential clemency. It marked the second execution in two weeks following that of fellow Malaysian Datchinamurthy Kataiah on Sept. 25. Pannir was the fourth Malaysian and 12th person to be executed so far this year in Singapore, the majority of those for drug-related offenses, activists said. This was up from nine executions for the whole of 2024. More than 40 people remain on death row in the city-state. &ldquo;It is indefensible that Singapore continues to cruelly pursue more executions in the name of drug control,&rdquo; Amnesty International&rsquo;s death penalty adviser Chiara Sangiorgio said in a statement Wednesday. &ldquo; Yet there is no evidence that the death penalty has a unique deterrent effect or that it has any impact on the use and availability of drugs.&rdquo; Singapore&rsquo;s strict drug laws mandate the death penalty for anyone caught carrying more than 15 grams of heroin or 500 grams of cannabis. Critics say the law only targets low-level traffickers and couriers. But Singapore&#39;s government defends it as vital for public safety. Pannir&rsquo;s family, his lawyers and various rights groups noted the Singapore court had found he was merely a courier transporting the substance. Pannir had said he didn&rsquo;t know he was carrying drugs. Still, the court had to hand down the death sentence after prosecutors refused to issue Pannir a certificate of substantive assistance vouching that he helped their investigation, which would have spared his life, they said. Pannir, the third of six children, was the son of a church pastor who worked as a lorry driver to make ends meet, activists said. He loved music and played in a church band growing up. In prison, Pannir penned letters, songs and poems about the anguish of being on death row and hopes of a second chance. His family has shared some of his songs, which were sung by several Malaysian singers.

Asia

Singapore executed Malaysian Pannir Selvam Pranthaman for drug trafficking, marking its 12th execution in 2025. Despite appeals and activism, his clemency was denied, highlighting ongoing controversy over Singapore’s strict drug laws.

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US kills 14 in strikes on alleged Pacific drug boats

12th execution in Singapore: Malaysian drug trafficker hanged