Hegseth backs special ops chief’s ‘combat decisions’ in deadly Caribbean strike ahead of classified briefing

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said he stands by the “combat decisions” of a military commander involved in a deadly Sept. 2 strike on a suspected drug vessel in the Caribbean as lawmakers are gearing up for a classified briefing on the matter later this week. 

Hegseth’s comment comes after The Washington Post reported Friday that he verbally ordered everyone onboard the alleged drug boat to be killed in the Sept. 2 operation. The Post reported that a second strike was conducted to take out the remaining survivors on the boat.  

The White House said Monday that Hegseth authorized the second strike, but the head of U.S. Special Operations Command, Adm. Frank Bradley, ordered and directed it. At the time of the strike, Bradley was serving as the commander of Joint Special Operations Command, which falls under U.S. Special Operations Command.  

“Let’s make one thing crystal clear: Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and has my 100% support. I stand by him and the combat decisions he has made — on the September 2 mission and all others since,” Hegseth wrote on X on Monday night.

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“America is fortunate to have such men protecting us. When this Department of War says we have the back of our warriors — we mean it,” he added. 

Bradley is set to provide a classified briefing Thursday to lawmakers overseeing the military, according to The Associated Press. 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday that the Sept. 2 strike was conducted “in self-defense” in international waters “in accordance with the law of armed conflict.”

“On September 2nd, Secretary Hegseth authorized Admiral Bradley to conduct these kinetic strikes,” Leavitt said. “Admiral Bradley worked well within his authority and the law, directing the engagement to ensure the boat was destroyed and the threat to the United States of America was eliminated.” 

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Leavitt also disputed that 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 it quite clear that if narco-terrorists, again, are trafficking illegal drugs toward the United States, he has the authority to kill them.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., on Monday said the committees in the upper and lower chambers of Congress will look into what happened.  

“I don’t think you want to draw any conclusions or deductions until 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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Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, pledged that his panel’s investigation would be “done by the numbers.”

Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the committee who has called for the Trump administration to release the video of the strike, said its inquiry would start “with briefings about what actually happened” from the officials involved. 

“If they’ve done nothing wrong, then that video should exonerate them completely. Why don’t they release it?” he asked. 

In the House, Rep. Mike Rogers, the Republican chair of its Armed Services Committee, said he was “satisfied” following a conversation with Hegseth about the attack, but that he also wanted to hear from Bradley.

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“We’ll all have clarity on Thursday afternoon,” Rogers said. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.