The U.S. military has said that it has carried out another strike on a boat on Friday, marking the third attack in the span of a week.

The U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), which oversees American military forces in the Caribbean and Latin America, confirmed the strike, the latest in a controversial months-long campaign against alleged drug boats in the eastern Pacific and Caribbean Sea.

The boat was accused of smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Three men, described by SOUTHCOM as “narco-terrorists,” were killed, bringing the overall death toll in the strikes, which began in early September, to over 200 people.

Engaged in 'Narco-trafficking Operations'

SOUTHCOM said the military action was a “lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations.” The post said that intelligence had confirmed the vessel was “transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific,” and that it was engaged in “narco-trafficking operations.”

This is the latest strike in what the U.S. government describes as a crackdown on drug trafficking into the country. However, this action has attracted international criticism, concern from humanitarian groups, and close scrutiny from Congress.

The Trump administration has not yet publicly provided evidence that the boats were ferrying drugs.

Are The Strikes Legal?

The strike comes one day after the U.S. killed two people in a strike on an alleged drug boat, and days after a U.S. strike on another vessel killed one man and left two survivors.

The U.S. government has said that it is in a legal “armed conflict” with drug cartels, which they say is necessary to clamp down on drug flows into the country and save American lives.

However, humanitarian groups, international experts and some former officials have decried the strikes as illegal under international law because the military is not allowed to target civilians who don't pose an immediate threat.

The American Civil Liberties Union has cast assertions made by the Trump administration against the groups as “unsubstantiated” and “fear-mongering claims.” Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have said the strikes are tantamount to unlawful killings.

Guatemala Denies Involvement

As the Trump administration's crackdown continues, Bernardo Arévalo, the President of Guatemala, has denied reports that the Central American nation authorized the U.S. to carry out strikes against drug smugglers on its soil.

Arévalo told reporters that there is “no agreement” after The New York Times reported he consented to joint airstrikes and other military operations in Guatemala during a call with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

However, he said that Guatemala has requested help from the U.S. to tackle cartels amidst the narco-trafficking crackdown.

Despite the Trump administration’s assertions that the conflict is necessary, experts have warned that the operation is not slowing the flow of cocaine, the top drug smuggled out of South America, into the U.S., and that it is as easy as it was prior to the beginning of the strikes, per a report from The New York Times.

These findings were based on evaluations of street prices, lethal overdoses, drug seizures at the U.S. border, and sample purity.