In short

• Donald Trump has been briefed on possible options for a US military operation in Venezuela.
• Pete Hegseth has announced a mission called"Southern Spear."
• The US military is intensifying its crackdown on smugglers, destroying boats and killing suspected smugglers from South America.

Will the U.S. conduct a military operation in Venezuela? Pentagon chief announces"Southern Spear" mission

According to CBS, Trump was presented with options for organizing military operations, including those conducted on land. Each of them would be possible in the"coming days".

"This mission, led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and Southcom (United States Southern Command - ed.), is to defend our homeland, remove narco-terrorists from our hemisphere, and protect our homeland from the drugs that are killing our people," the Pentagon chief wrote.

As the station's American portal recalls, over the last two months the US military has attacked at least 21 boats which - according to official reports from the national administration - were supposed to be transporting banned substances from South America to the United States.

During the strikes, 80 people suspected of smuggling were killed. Only two survived and were later repatriated to Ecuador and Colombia. However, the Ecuadorian was released by local authorities due to lack of evidence of any crime.

Pete Hegseth commented on the US administration's policy towards smugglers of banned substances at a summit in Fort Wayne on Wednesday. He advised those involved in the practice"not to get on the boat".

"If you are trafficking drugs to poison the American people and we know that you are a member of a known terrorist organization, a foreign terrorist or a trafficker, we will find you and kill you," the Secretary of War threatened.