Two days after US forces struck a suspected Venezuelan drug cartel boat in international waters, killing three men, FBI Director Kash Patel declared that cartels must be treated like al Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks. Patel told senators the mission would be years-long, echoing Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who vowed to "track, kill and dismantle" traffickers. President Donald Trump defended the strikes, calling the cartels "extraordinarily violent narcoterrorists" and warning land-based smugglers could also be targeted. The operations follow a major US military buildup in the Caribbean, while Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro condemned the strikes as "aggression" and accused Washington of violating sovereignty.