Amid an ongoing row surrounding Pete Hegseth’s alleged direction to kill everyone on board a suspected drug boat, the White House on Monday clarified that an admiral ordered the strikes after securing relevant authorization from the US Defense Secretary.
During a press briefing, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Hegseth authorized a US Navy admiral to carry out the strikes, as reported by AFP.
Leavitt added that the admiral approved a second strike on the boat and was well within his legal right to do so.
Admiral Frank Bradley “worked 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,” the White House Press Secretary was quoted as saying by the news agency.
The White House’s statement on the ongoing row back Hegseth’s earlier claim that all actions taken were “in compliance with the law of armed conflict,” following the publication of a report by The Washington Post that alleged the US Defense Secretary’s direct role in ordering the follow-up strike.
After an initial missile strike on the boat, which had 11 people aboard, two survivors were reportedly seen clinging to the debris. A subsequent “double-tap” strike was allegedly ordered to comply with Hegseth’s directive to leave no survivors, killing all 11 people, The Washington Post had said in its report.
With the report sparking political controversy, the US Defense Secretary had dubbed it “fake news” at the time in a lengthy post on X.
“As usual, the fake news is delivering more fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland,” Hegseth had written.
“As we’ve said from the beginning, and in every statement, these highly effective strikes are specifically intended to be ‘lethal, kinetic strikes.’ The declared intent is to stop lethal drugs, destroy narco-boats, and kill the narco-terrorists who are poisoning the American people. Every trafficker we kill is affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization,” the US Defense Secretary had added.
He had also lashed out at the earlier Biden administration for “the kid gloves approach” which he alleged was responsible for “allowing millions of people – including dangerous cartels and unvetted Afghans – to flood” the US.
What did Trump say about the drug boat row?
The White House’s statement on the issue on Monday comes after US President Donald Trump earlier defended his Defense Secretary.
“I’m going to find out about it, but Pete said he did not order the death of those two men,” Trump was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
When questioned about whether a follow-up strike would be lawful, he responded, “No, I wouldn’t have wanted that, not a second strike. The first strike was very lethal.”