Congress to review US military strikes on Venezuelan boats
發佈日期: 2025-12-02 19:54
TVB News
Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro is running out of options to step down and leave his country under US-guaranteed safe passage, following a short call with US President Donald Trump last month, where Trump reportedly refused a series of requests from the Venezuelan leader.
This as the White House said Monday that a Navy admiral acted 'within his authority and the law' when he ordered a second strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea in a September US military operation that's come under bipartisan scrutiny.
The crowd is chanting "Maduro, my friend, the people are with you." Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Monday defiantly dismissed increasing pressure from the US telling the people of his country he would remain steadfast and swearing 'absolute loyalty' to them. Maduro saying "We do not want a slave's peace, nor the peace of colonies. Colony, never. Slaves, never. Freedom, republic, peace with dignity, that's the peace. Rest assured that I will never ever fail you."
Military tensions between the US and Venezuela have been escalating after the Trump administration had ordered a series of strikes against alleged drug boats off Venezuelan territory, with a second strike ordered to target survivors in one case which Congress said it is now reviewing.
Will Weissert of The Associated Press said. "White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that on September 2nd there was a strike against a vessel where there were a couple of survivors, and then a second strike was ordered to sort of target those survivors. She said a Navy Admiral had given the order and that it was done according to the rules of engagement militarily and that it was all lawful and that the president has the right to sort of strike against drug boats that seem to do harm in the United States.That's interesting because the president himself had suggested yesterday that he wasn't sure a second strike had happened and he wasn't sure that it had been authorised by the Defense Department."
Lawmakers cited a published report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a verbal order for a second strike that killed survivors on the boat in that September incident.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying President Trump "wouldn't have wanted that - not a second strike."
