The United States military announced this morning that it struck a vessel suspected of being used for drug trafficking in the Eastern Pacific. This marks the first known operation of this kind in more than two months.

According to the U.S. Southern Command, SOUTHCOM, the strike was carried out on Sunday and resulted in the deaths of two people who were on board.

“The Joint Interagency Task Force West of the Hemisphere conducted a lethal strike against a low-profile vessel operating along designated drug trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific,” SOUTHCOM stated on the X platform.

Based on available data, this is the first such action since June 21. The reason why operations in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific had been halted remains unknown.

Prior to this pause, the U.S. military had destroyed at least 67 vessels and killed at least 221 people since the launch of Operation Southern Spear in September 2025. The figures are based on official announcements and CNN’s analysis of search and rescue operations.

The Trump administration has notified Congress that the U.S. is in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels, and has classified those killed during these operations as “unlawful combatants.”

Simultaneously, the U.S. government states that it can carry out lethal strikes without prior judicial review, citing a secret Department of Justice opinion.

This approach has been opposed by members of Congress and human rights organizations. According to critics, individuals suspected of drug trafficking should be arrested and face justice, as was the stated U.S. interdiction policy before Donald Trump took office.

Law enforcement officials and experts have also raised questions about the Trump administration’s strategy and the possibility of it producing significant changes in the region’s drug trade.

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Bitcoin posted a strong gain on Thursday, climbing 22.9% over the last 7 days and crossing the $70,000 level for the first time in more than two months. The rise was supported by falling U.S. Treasury yields and renewed optimism over regulatory developments in the cryptocurrency market in the United States.

The world’s largest cryptocurrency reached around $71,700, its highest level since June 1, continuing the positive trend that began a day earlier.

Bitcoin’s market capitalization rose by about 11.1% over 24 hours, reaching $1.43 trillion. Meanwhile, daily trading volume jumped more than 260%, to around $60.8 billion.

The rally extended to the rest of the cryptocurrency market. The sector’s overall market capitalization expanded by 10.23%, to $2.42 trillion. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market value, posted an even stronger gain of 18.6%, reaching around $2,270.

Bitcoin had on Wednesday recorded its biggest daily gain since March, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s meeting with executives of some of the largest companies in the cryptocurrency industry, including Coinbase, Payward – the operator of the Kraken platform – and Blockchain.com.

The meeting raised expectations for further progress on the so-called “Clarity Act,” a bill that aims to more clearly define the market structure and regulatory framework for digital assets in the United States.

The bill failed to come to a vote in the Senate before the start of the August recess, but investors remain optimistic that discussions could resume once lawmakers return.

Two secure platforms where you can make your investments in cryptocurrencies are Binance and cex.io. These two platforms also accept payments from Albania, Kosovo, and North Macedonia. /albeu.com/

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