US Holds 2 Survivors of New Attack in Caribbean

US forces took survivors into custody after striking a suspected drug-carrying vessel in the Caribbean—the first attack that anyone escaped alive since President Trump began the strikes in the region last month, officials said Friday. Trump then confirmed the military operation. "We attacked a submarine, and that was a drug-carrying submarine built specifically for the transportation of massive amounts of drugs," Trump said at the White House. The two survivors are being held on a Navy ship in the area, per the New York Times. The strike Thursday brought the death toll from the Trump administration's military actions against vessels in the region to at least 28.

The US now has to decide what to do with the survivors. They could be released, held indefinitely on a claim they're wartime detainees, or be turned over to civilian law enforcement officials for prosecution. A civilian case risks causing problems for the administration that include judicial scrutiny of the legal grounds for the military campaign, the Times points out. The attacks have caused unease among both Democrats and Republicans in Congress, per the AP, with some Republicans saying they have not received sufficient information on how the strikes are being conducted. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday that details on the latest attack are forthcoming.