Pete Hegseth

It was the right call.

We have his back and the American people are safer because narco terrorists know you can't bring drugs through the water and eventually on land if necessary.

We will eliminate that threat and we're proud to do it.

But now... We're going to conduct oversight and we're going to try to get to the facts.

And by the way, Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat.

I watched that first strike live.

As you can imagine, at the Department of War, we've got a lot of things to do.

So I didn't stick around for the hour and two hours, whatever, where all the sensitive site exploitation digitally occurs.

So I moved on to my next meeting.

And by the way, Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat.

Defense Secretary Hegseth described his actions during the first U.S.

attack in the Caribbean on September 2nd.

Nine people were killed initially, but two people survived.

A second U.S.

strike killed them, but Hegseth said he only learned hours later that this follow-up strike took place.

He said the commander of the operation made the correct decision to, quote, sink the boat and eliminate the threat.

But critics have raised the possibility the attack could be a violation of U.S.

law or the laws of war.

Greg Myhre, NPR News, Washington.

Pete Hankseth put the blame for the second strike squarely on his commander, Admiral Mitch Bradley, saying on X, I stand by him and the combat decisions he has made on the September 2nd mission and all others since.