Trump issues warning to narcoterrorists after strike on drug boat: Beware!

Donald Trump has released a video apparently showing a drug boat operated by a Venezuelan-based narcoterrorist group being destroyed in an airstrike.

The video shows the boat at speed being monitored from the side, then from above and in front, before an unidentified munition is released.

It also shows the detonation of the device, followed by the wreck ablaze, with all on board presumed dead.

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According to the US president, the boat was being run by a group called Tren de Aragua.

The criminal organisation was originally formed as a prison gang in the early 2010s, since when it has expanded its area of operations.

It now carries out its illegal activities across Latin America and the United States.

One his Truth Details social media page, Mr Trump posted: "Earlier this morning, on my orders, US military forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua narcoterrorists in the Southcom [US Southern Command] area of responsibility.

"TDA is a designated foreign terrorist organisation, operating under the control of Nicolas Maduro, responsible for mass murder, drug trafficking, sex trafficking, and acts of violence and terror across the United States and Western Hemisphere.

"The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in international waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the United States.

"The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No US forces were harmed in this strike."

Although Tren de Aragua has not been proscribed by the UK, it has defied Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and has drawn Mr Trump's ire.

He concluded: "Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!"

A $5m bounty

The US takes the threat posed by the group so seriously that the State Department is offering a $5m reward for information leading to the capture or conviction of the group's leader.

It said: "Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores (aka Niño Guerrero) has a history of being involved in criminal activities for over two decades and currently is the detestable leader of TdA.

"Guerrero expanded TdA from a prison gang involved in extortion and bribery to an organisation engaged in terrorism with growing influence throughout the Western Hemisphere.

"The Department of State, through the Transnational Organised Crime Rewards Programme managed by the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), is offering a reward of up to $5mn for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Guerrero."