US military strike kills leader of Venezuela's Tren de Aragua cartel

President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. Southern Command carried out a rapid kinetic strike that eliminated Hector Rustenford Gerero Flores, known as “Ninja Gerero,” the head of the Venezuelan criminal organization Tren de Aragua. The operation was described as a coordinated effort with Venezuelan security forces and targeted a complex linked to the cartel in Venezuela.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegset confirmed the strike earlier in the week and said it underscored the joint U.S.–Venezuela commitment to combat the group, which the Trump administration earlier designated a foreign terrorist organization. Tren de Aragua is involved in drug trafficking, extortion, illegal mining and human‑trafficking across Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and the United States. Since September, the Southern Command reported more than 200 drug‑related targets killed in similar operations.

Trump warned that the cartel’s terrorists no longer have safe havens in Venezuela or elsewhere and pledged continued action against narcotraffickers worldwide.