Pete Hegseth’s Department of Defense is reportedly directing military officials to sign non-disclosure agreements.
Three U.S. officials told Reuters that the order extends to personnel connected to the Trump administration’s lethal strikes on vessels in the Caribbean—attacks the administration claims targeted ships smuggling drugs from Venezuela.
The exact number of people involved in Trump’s Latin American operations remains unclear, but the unprecedented directive comes despite existing rules already barring military officials from disclosing national security secrets.
It also comes amid growing concerns—even among President Donald Trump’s own allies—over the strikes, which have killed at least 57 people since September.
The administration has defended the attacks as an effort to combat international drug traffickers through targeted strikes on vessels allegedly operated by Latin American cartels, including Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua.
Few details are known about those targeted except that some include people from Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador.
The first strike alone killed 11 people in international waters and has been described by critics as a grave human rights violation and possibly amounting to a war crime.
Officials have also refused to provide lawmakers with unedited footage of the attacks or to explain who was killed, how they were identified as legitimate targets, what intelligence linked them to drug-trafficking gangs, or what evidence indicated they were transporting narcotics to the United States, NBC previously reported.
Some lawmakers have taken their concerns public. GOP Senator Rand Paul—who crossed party lines to support a failed measure requiring congressional approval for future strikes—voiced his concerns in a Senate floor speech earlier this month.
“Those in charge of deciding whom to kill, might let us know their names, present proof of their guilt, show evidence of their crimes,” he said.
“Is it too much to ask to know the names of those we kill before we kill them, to know what evidence exists of their guilt?”
Meanwhile, Hegseth has seemingly made it his mission to tighten his grip on information flowing out of the Pentagon. The secretary of defense has reportedly barred generals from speaking to Congress without prior approval and has waged a public war on the press—restricting coverage from dozens of journalists after they refused to sign a Department of Defense policy.
The Pentagon has also scaled back media briefings and public speaking engagements in what officials describe as an effort to control leaks. A memo issued by Hegseth last month referenced an “enhanced framework for participating in external engagements.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
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