WATCH: U.S. Forces Blow Up ANOTHER Refueling Vessel Used By Drug Traffickers

On Sept. 5, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM, Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere (JTF-WHEM) forces successfully interdicted a multi-vessel floating refueling station in support of illicit at-sea drug trafficking operations in the Eastern Pacific.

Intelligence confirmed the vessels… pic.twitter.com/wVPoTxGmnC

— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) September 5, 2026

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On Sept. 5, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM, Joint Task Force Western Hemisphere (JTF-WHEM) forces successfully interdicted a multi-vessel floating refueling station in support of illicit at-sea drug trafficking operations in the Eastern Pacific.

Intelligence confirmed the vessels were operating in support of the Los Choneros violent narco-terrorist organization. Individuals removed from the main vessel have been transferred to Ecuadorian authorities. Once the main vessel was cleared and the crew disembarked, U.S. forces sank it and the attached support vessels. JTF-WHEM continues to conduct precise and professional operations to dismantle the logistical networks fueling narco-trafficking in the Western Hemisphere.

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It was the fourth interdiction of vessels used as floating refueling platforms in the eastern Pacific, according to a U.S. official, who said no one on either side was hurt or killed.

The mission was carried out as part of U.S. Southern Command’s efforts to hinder narcotics smugglers in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, a campaign that began just over a year ago…

The operation was supported by sailors and Marines aboard the amphibious ship U.S.S. San Antonio, which launched helicopters that fired munitions into other accompanying vessels and sank them, the official said.

Southern Command, which is based in South Florida, said the refueling operation was run by Los Choneros, which the State Department designated as a “foreign terrorist organization” just days after the campaign against suspected smuggling vessels began on Sept. 2, 2025.

In that time, the U.S. military has launched 68 attacks on what it said were drug smuggling vessels in the region, killing 227 people, according to a New York Times analysis.

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