Why the media's Hegseth boat-strike tale fails the Pentagon reality test
Fox News' Aishah Hasnie reports the latest on the Trump administration's response to criticism over strikes targeting alleged drug boats and her new role anchoring a two-hour show in January.
America is now consumed with allegations that, in early September, U.S. forces struck a suspected drug-trafficking vessel in the Caribbean — and then struck again to kill any survivors. Some in the media, led by the Washington Post, suggest that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth ordered a "kill-everyone" mission and that the Trump administration may have committed a war crime.
If true, such an act would violate the law of armed conflict — specifically the prohibition against targeting individuals who are hors de combat (out of the fight). But as of today, nothing close to definitive evidence has emerged. We are dealing with conflicting anonymous sources, evolving accounts and intense political motivations.
And from where I sit — as someone who has conducted formal investigations for senior Pentagon leaders, spent a quarter of a century on the Army staff in uniform and as a contractor, and attended countless high-level operational briefings — the story being told in some corners of the press does not pass a basic plausibility test.
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The Washington Post claims two unnamed officials told them that Hegseth gave a verbal order on Sept. 2 to "kill-everybody" aboard the vessel, and later ordered a follow-on strike once survivors were spotted.
The Washington Post claims two unnamed officials told them that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth gave a verbal order on Sept. 2 to "kill-everybody" aboard a drug-trafficking vessel in the Caribbean, and later ordered a follow-on strike once survivors were spotted. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
The Post’s headline read: "Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all."
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