Admiral says there was no ‘kill them all’ order in boat attack, but video alarms lawmakers

U.S. Navy Admiral denied receiving “kill them all” order in controversial Caribbean drug boat strike, according to testimony before lawmakers on Thursday. Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley appeared at a series of classified Capitol Hill briefings as Congress investigates a September 2 attack that resulted in the deaths of two survivors clinging to a capsized vessel.

The incident has become a flashpoint in the broader examination of the Trump administration’s aggressive campaign against suspected drug traffickers, which has killed more than 80 people in approximately 20 military strikes.

“Bradley was very clear that he was given no such order, to give no quarter or to kill them all,” said Republican Senator Tom Cotton, who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee, following the classified briefing.

However, lawmakers emerged from the sessions with starkly different interpretations of what they witnessed in video footage of the attack. Democrats expressed serious concerns about the legality and justification of the strike that killed two apparently defenseless survivors.

“The order was basically: Destroy the drugs, kill the 11 people on the boat,” said Representative Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee. Smith described the survivors as “basically two shirtless people clinging to the bow of a capsized and inoperable boat, drifting in the water—until the missiles come and kill them.”

Connecticut Representative Jim Himes, ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, called the footage “one of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service.”

Senator Cotton offered a sharply contrasting account, claiming the survivors were “trying to flip a boat loaded with drugs bound for United States back over so they could stay in the fight.” He characterized the time between the initial attack and the follow-up strikes that killed the survivors as “several minutes.”

The briefings, which included Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine alongside Admiral Bradley, come at a critical moment for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, whose leadership is under intense scrutiny. Multiple Democrats have called for Hegseth’s resignation over the incident.

At the time of the attack, Bradley commanded Joint Special Operations Command, overseeing elite special operations units from Fort Bragg, North Carolina. He was promoted to commander of U.S. Special Operations Command approximately one month after the strike. Bradley’s distinguished military career spans more than three decades, primarily serving in the Navy SEALs and commanding joint operations, including being among the first special forces officers deployed to Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks.

Legal experts have suggested that targeting survivors could potentially violate laws of military warfare. President Donald Trump has justified the campaign by arguing that drug cartels should be treated as armed combatants because their cargo threatens American lives. This position has raised significant questions about the legal basis for employing military force against suspected drug smugglers.

Democrats are demanding additional evidence, including release of the complete attack video, written records of orders, and any directives issued by Hegseth regarding the mission. Lawmakers noted that none of the written orders or audio recordings of verbal commands were shared during the briefings.

A White House Office of Legal Counsel memo providing justification for the strikes was reportedly created on September 5, three days after the attack in question. Democrats are calling for this memo to be made public.

Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, stated that he and Republican Committee Chair Roger Wicker have formally requested executive orders authorizing the operations and complete videos from the strikes. Reed claimed the Trump administration has consistently denied their requests for basic operational information.

Many observers, including Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, have characterized the U.S. military campaign as part of a broader effort to prompt regime change in the South American country. Maduro recently acknowledged speaking with Trump by phone last month, a conversation the U.S. President had previously confirmed.

The Republican-controlled Congress has thus far resisted attempts to place limitations on Trump’s authority to continue the missile campaign, which Secretary Hegseth has pledged will proceed despite the controversy.