Former President Donald Trump stated on Friday that the United States military successfully targeted and killed Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, the leader of the Venezuelan criminal organization known as Tren de Aragua. Trump, posting on his Truth Social platform, described the operation as a "swift and lethal kinetic strike" carried out by U.S. Southern Command (Southcom).

Tren de Aragua has been a focal point of recent U.S. immigration and crime policy debates, with the gang accused of expanding its operations across various countries in the Americas, including the United States. While Trump’s announcement frames the death as a successful military action against a high-profile criminal figure, the claim has not yet been independently verified by current U.S. government officials or the Department of Defense.

There is currently a discrepancy regarding the official status of the operation. While Trump’s statement asserts that the U.S. military was responsible for the strike, official military channels have not issued a confirmation or a press release regarding such an operation. The situation remains developing as observers wait for official confirmation from the Pentagon or the Biden administration regarding the validity of the claim and the circumstances surrounding the alleged strike.