Hegseth backs commander’s ‘combat decisions’ in deadly Caribbean strike
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War Secretary Pete Hegseth said he stands by the “combat decisions” of a military commander involved in a deadly Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug-smuggling ship in the Caribbean, as lawmakers prepare for a classified briefing on the issue later this week.
Hegseth’s comment comes after The Washington Post reported Friday that he verbally ordered everyone on board the alleged drug boat to be killed during the Sept. 2 operation. The Post reported that a second strike was carried out to eliminate the remaining survivors on the boat.
The White House said Monday that Hegseth authorized the second strike, but that the head of U.S. Special Operations Command, Admiral Frank Bradley, ordered and directed it. At the time of the attack, Bradley was commander of Joint Special Operations Command, which falls under U.S. Special Operations Command.
“Let’s be clear about one thing: Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and he has my full support. I support him and the combat decisions he made – on the September 2 mission and every other since,” Hegseth wrote on X Monday evening.
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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, left, and Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley, right. (Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu via Getty Images; USSOCOM)
“America is fortunate to have such men protecting us. When this War Department says we support our warriors, we mean it,” he added.
Bradley is expected to provide a classified briefing to lawmakers overseeing the military on Thursday, according to the Associated Press.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday that the Sept. 2 strike was carried out “in self-defense” in international waters “consistent with the law of armed conflict.”
“On September 2, Secretary Hegseth authorized Admiral Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes,” Leavitt said. “Admiral Bradley worked well within his authority and the law, leading the engagement to ensure the destruction of the ship and the elimination of the threat to the United States of America.”
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Video footage shared by President Donald Trump on Truth Social showed the suspected drug ship shortly before its destruction on September 2, 2025. (@realDonaldTrump via Truth Social)
Leavitt also disputed whether Hegseth ever gave an initial order to ensure that everyone on board was killed, when asked specifically about Hegseth’s instructions.
“I would reject that the Secretary of War ever said that,” Leavitt said. “However, the President has made clear that if narcoterrorists, once again, traffic illegal drugs into the United States, he has the authority to kill them.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Monday that committees in both the upper and lower houses of Congress would look into what happened.
“I don’t think you want to draw conclusions or inferences before you have all the facts,” he said of the Sept. 2 strike, according to the AP. “We’ll see where they lead.”
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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth arrives for a press conference at the Pentagon June 22, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, promised that his committee’s investigation would be “run by the numbers.”
Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the committee that asked the Trump administration to release video of the strike, said the investigation would begin “with information about what really happened” from the officials involved.
“If they didn’t do anything wrong, then this video should completely exonerate them. Why aren’t they releasing it?” he asked.
In the House, Rep. Mike Rogers, Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said he was “pleased” following a conversation with Hegseth about the attack, but that he also wanted to hear from Bradley.
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“We will all have more clarity Thursday afternoon,” Rogers said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
