The escalation is continuing in the anti-cartel operations in Latin America, with drug-boat attacks and the deployment of the largest force to the region since the darkest days of the Cold War.
Yesterday, the WSJ reported that the Donald J. Trump administration had ‘identified targets in Venezuela that include military facilities used to smuggle drugs’.
Air and missile strikes are expected to force the hand of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to step down.
The Wall Street Journal reported (behind a paywall):
“While the president hasn’t made a final decision on ordering land strikes, the officials said a potential air campaign would focus on targets that sit at the nexus of the drug gangs and the Maduro regime. Trump and his senior aides have been particularly focused on unsettling Maduro as the U.S. military has attacked boats allegedly carrying drugs in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean.”
Of course, the WSJ has just been named by Trump as ‘fake news’, and their reports need to be considered under great scrutiny, and not believed right away.
However, the Miami Herald also reported on this – and what’s more, indicates that the decision to strike has been taken, and the attacks are imminent.
“The Trump Administration has made the decision to attack military installations inside Venezuela and the strikes could come at any moment, sources with knowledge of the situation told the Miami Herald, as the U.S. prepares to initiate the next stage of its campaign against the Soles drug cartel.”
BREAKING
The Trump administration has reportedly authorized strikes on Venezuelan military sites, with the attacks expected to begin at any time. – Miami Herald pic.twitter.com/RYNYfh1604
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) October 31, 2025
The strikes aim to destroy military installations used by the cartel allegedly headed by Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro.
“Sources told the Herald that the targets — which could be struck by air in a matter of days or even hours — also aim to decapitate the cartel’s hierarchy. U.S. officials believe the cartel exports around 500 tons of cocaine yearly, split between Europe and the United States.”
There is even speculation that Maduro himself may be one of the targets.
“’Maduro is about to find himself trapped and might soon discover that he cannot flee the country even if he decided to’, the source said. ‘What’s worse for him, there is now more than one general willing to capture and hand him over, fully aware that one thing is to talk about death, and another to see it coming’.”
A US strike has killed four people suspected of being drug smugglers in the eastern Pacific Ocean. #us #military #pacificocean #boat #petehegseth pic.twitter.com/kdZv6YmGSq
— 7NEWS Australia (@7NewsAustralia) October 30, 2025
“So far, the force has been used mainly in maritime operations. As of this week, U.S. strikes have targeted fast boats the administration says were carrying narcotics—most intercepted off Venezuela’s coast; the attacks have killed 61 suspected traffickers.”
Read more:
Update: The White House responded: “Unnamed sources don’t know what they’re talking about,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a Friday statement to Fox News. “Any announcements regarding Venezuela policy would come directly from the President.”
The post ‘A MATTER OF DAYS OR EVEN HOURS’: Reports Arise of Impending US Attacks on Drug Cartel Targets on Venezuelan Soil – White House Responds appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.