WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US military said it killed three people in a strike on an alleged drug-trafficking vessel in the Caribbean on Sunday, bringing the controversial campaign’s death toll to at least 180.

President Donald Trump’s administration insists it is effectively at war with what it calls “narco-terrorists” in Latin America, and began targeting suspected drug-smuggling boats last September.

US Southern Command, which is responsible for Washington’s forces in the region, said it conducted a “lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations.”

“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations. Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action,” it said in a post on X.

US military officials have claimed at least six such strikes in April, bringing the total toll of people killed in these operations at least 180, according to an Agence France-Presse tally.

The Trump administration has provided no definitive evidence that the vessels it targets are involved in drug trafficking, prompting heated debate about the legality of the operations.

International legal experts and rights groups say the strikes likely amount to extrajudicial killings as they have apparently targeted civilians who do not pose an immediate threat to the US.