HEGSETH Orders “Kill Everybody” – War Crimes?

Aerial view of the Pentagon building and surrounding area.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth allegedly issued explicit orders to “kill everybody” aboard suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean, potentially exposing himself and military personnel to war crimes prosecutions.

Story Highlights

Hegseth ordered SEAL Team 6 to eliminate all survivors from a burning drug boat off Trinidad’s coast
The September 2025 strike killed 11 people, including two survivors targeted in a second missile attack
Legal experts warn the “kill all” directive constitutes war crimes and extrajudicial execution
UN human rights officials demand investigation into what they call systematic attacks on civilians
Military lawyers caution American personnel face prosecution for following potentially illegal orders

The Fatal Order That Changed Everything

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth crossed a legal line that military experts say could haunt him for decades. According to a Washington Post investigation, Hegseth issued a direct verbal command to “kill everybody” aboard a suspected drug-smuggling vessel during a Caribbean military operation. When two survivors clung to the burning wreckage after an initial missile strike, SEAL Team 6 executed a second strike under Hegseth’s explicit directive to leave no witnesses.

This will be EXACTLY the type of thing that will imperil the chain of command re: unlawful orders. @SecWar has put himself, @POTUS, and other officers in legal peril.

Pentagon Pete in Legal Peril Over ‘Kill Them All’ Orders https://t.co/kv3rQoYXEk

— Mfg Guy (@guy_mfg) November 29, 2025

The operation represents the first publicly acknowledged U.S. airstrike in Central or South America since the 1989 Panama invasion. What distinguishes this from standard military operations is not just the location, but the explicit order to eliminate survivors who posed no immediate threat. Legal experts argue this transforms a counter-narcotics mission into something far more sinister.

When Military Protocol Meets Legal Reality

Former Special Operations legal adviser Todd Huntley delivered a damning assessment of Hegseth’s directive. Since the United States is not officially at war with drug traffickers, Huntley argued, using lethal force against suspects who pose no imminent threat “amounts to murder.” Even more troubling, he noted that ordering the killing of survivors incapable of resistance constitutes a “no-quarter” directive, which international law recognizes as a war crime.

The Pentagon initially dismissed the Washington Post reporting as “completely false,” but multiple sources with direct knowledge confirmed both the SEAL Team 6 operation and Hegseth’s kill-all order. This contradiction between public denial and private confirmation suggests an administration struggling to control a narrative that exposes potential criminal liability at the highest levels of government.

International Law Collides With Trump’s Drug War

The legal implications extend far beyond American shores. Former International Criminal Court chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo characterized the strikes as crimes against humanity, explaining that systematic attacks against civilian populations violate international law regardless of suspected criminal activity. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk demanded the United States halt the strikes and investigate what human rights experts called “extrajudicial executions.”

Pentagon Pete in Legal Peril Over ‘Kill Them All’ Orders

This is why you refuse illegal orders 🥸🥸🥸

But we all know how much you people on the right hate brown people so I bet you're all for this you weirdo

— Elons Sex Pest Dad (@ElonsSexPestDad) November 28, 2025

These aren’t just academic legal theories. Representative Seth Moulton, a Marine Corps veteran, warned that American personnel involved “will be prosecuted for this, either as a war crime or outright murder.” The strikes establish a dangerous precedent where military force replaces law enforcement against non-state actors engaged in criminal activity, potentially undermining decades of established legal frameworks.

The Expanding Campaign Nobody’s Talking About

The September 2 strike was merely the opening shot in a broader campaign that has received minimal public attention. Internal data reveals U.S. forces have conducted at least 22 additional maritime strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, killing more than 70 suspected smugglers. Even more concerning, DEA and military officials privately doubt whether all victims were actually traffickers, noting these boats sometimes transport migrants or fishermen.

This expansion occurs without congressional authorization or oversight. A scheduled bipartisan briefing on September 5 was abruptly cancelled, and Senate Intelligence Committee members report receiving no advance notice. The Senate has twice failed to pass resolutions limiting Trump’s authority for continued military action, effectively giving the administration carte blanche to continue operations that international bodies consider illegal.