WASHINGTON — The Defense Department's Office of Inspector General opened an investigation on May 11 into U.S. Southern Command's targeting of alleged drug-smuggling boats in the military's campaign against drug cartels. A letter from the office dated that day states that the internal watchdog will review the intelligence and targeting Southern Command used for the strikes and other aspects of operations against the cartels.
"The scope of this evaluation includes the joint process for targeted vessels in the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility as part of Operation Southern Spear," a spokeswoman for the Office of Inspector General said. "This project was self-initiated based on the [Department of Defense's Office of the Inspector General's] ongoing assessment of programs and operations."
The inquiry will include examinations inside the Pentagon and at Southern Command's headquarters in Miami, and will review the military doctrine that governs how the command targets the small drug-smuggling boats. According to a U.S. official, the targeting process used by Southern Command is broken into six phases: the commander's intent, the development of each target, the analysis and intelligence surrounding each target, the decision to hit that target, planning and execution, and assessment. It is not clear how long the investigation will take.
According to the Pentagon, Southern Command has targeted nearly 60 small boats transporting drugs through the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, destroying 59 vessels and killing 193 people since the campaign began last fall. According to Pentagon data, the command has conducted three strikes in May, killing seven people.
In one instance, the U.S. military targeted a boat with survivors and then conducted another strike that killed those survivors, which could be a potential violation of the law of armed conflict. The senior military lawyer for the combatant command overseeing lethal strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats near Venezuela disagreed with the Trump administration's position that the operations were lawful and was sidelined. Many lawmakers, including some Republicans, have decried the operations, questioned their legality, and demanded more oversight.
Admiral Alvin Holsey, commander of Southern Command, announced he would step down after one year in the position soon after the campaign began in September. Marine Corps General Frank Donovan replaced Holsey as commander.