Arizona senator pushes for hearings on controversial Venezuela boat strike

WASHINGTON (AZFamily/AP) — Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly is pushing for hearings on a controversial U.S. boat strike off the coast of Venezuela as military officials briefed lawmakers behind closed doors on Capitol Hill Thursday about the situation that has led to concerns about possible war crimes.

Kelly, a retired Navy Captain who sits on the Armed Services Committee, was not in Thursday’s briefing but has been calling for a full investigation into the September strike that killed suspected drug smugglers.

Lawmakers who attended Thursday’s briefing walked away split along party lines on what they saw. Republicans defended the deadly strike against suspected drug smugglers. Democrats say it crossed the line.

Briefing focused on follow-up strike

Thursday’s meeting wasn’t just about the first missile strike on that suspected drug boat. It was about a follow up strike and whether or not it was legal or a potential war crime.

Navy Vice Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley arrived on Capitol Hill to brief lawmakers about the September boat strike off the coast of Venezuela.

During the closed door meeting, Bradley showed them the full unedited version of video — the raw footage of the U.S. military opening fire on a boat suspected of carrying drugs. Following the first hit, two survivors were reportedly spotted near the remains of the vessel when a second strike was launched, killing them and leaving no survivors.

Republicans defend strikes

“The first strike, the second strike, and the third and the fourth strike on September 2nd were entirely lawful and needful and they were exactly what we’d expect our military commanders to do,” said Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas.

Cotton defended the second attack against what he called “narco terrorists.” But Democratic Congressman Jim Himes emerged from the briefing with a different take. He questioned the second attack against what he described as two “shipwrecked sailors.”

“The decisions taken and Admiral Bradley has a storied career and he has my respect and he should have the respect of all of us, but what I saw in that room was one of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service,” said Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn.

Admiral denies “kill them all” order

Lawmakers briefed by Admiral Bradley also said he denied he was ever given any order for a second strike to “kill them all.” This goes against reports that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had directly ordered the follow-up strikes.

Kelly questioned Hegseth’s role in the operation.

“I mean, he says he’s not in the room. I don’t know if he was in the room or not. It would be interesting to see what the other people say. Maybe he wasn’t, maybe he was. He’s the guy that’s the ultimate responsible party for an operation,” Kelly said.

The White House said Monday that Bradley acted “within his authority and the law” when he ordered the second, follow-up strike on the alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea, according to The Associated Press.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt offered the justification for the Sept. 2 strike as lawmakers announced there will be congressional review of the U.S. military strikes against vessels suspected of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific Ocean, the AP reported. The lawmakers cited a published report that Hegseth issued a verbal order for a second strike that killed survivors on the boat.

Leavitt in her comments to reporters did not dispute a Washington Post report that there were survivors after the initial strike. Her explanation came after President Donald Trump a day earlier said he “wouldn’t have wanted that — not a second strike” when asked about the incident.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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