Report: Trump administration orders military to prepare strike plans against Mexican cartels
- The Trump administration has issued a classified directive instructing the Department of Defense (DoD) to prepare for possible lethal operations inside Mexico targeting drug cartels, with plans expected by mid-September.
- Unlike previous covert operations run by the CIA or JSOC, U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) and its Special Operations Command North (SOCNORTH) are now tasked with leading efforts, including preparing “target packages” against cartel leaders and infrastructure.
- Coordinated with the CIA, FBI, DHS and Border Patrol, the strike options reportedly include precision drone strikes, airstrikes and direct action by elite special operations forces such as Navy SEALs and Army Green Berets.
- The plan was discussed at a July meeting led by Pentagon official Colby Jenkins, followed by talks between NORTHCOM commander Gen. Gregory Guillot and Mexico’s top defense officials, highlighting the diplomatic sensitivities involved.
- The White House and top officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have increasingly labeled cartels as terrorist organizations. The U.S. intelligence community calls them “the most immediate and direct threat” to national security, citing fentanyl trafficking and mass migration.
Three senior military officials have revealed that the Trump administration quietly directed the Department of Defense (DoD) to prepare for possible lethal operations against Mexican drug cartels inside Mexico.
According to a report by investigative journalist Ken Klippenstein, a top-secret planning order issued in late spring instructs U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) to develop a suite of strike options targeting cartel infrastructure, logistics and leadership.
Historically, operations of this sensitivity have been handled by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), often with limited visibility or oversight. However, the new plan would shift operational responsibility to NORTHCOM, positioning its Special Operations Command North (SOCNORTH) as the lead in preparing “target packages” for potential strikes. Primary targets reportedly include high-level leadership, compounds and logistical networks of the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
These efforts include coordinating with the CIA, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and Border Patrol, all of which have their own operations inside Mexico. Prospective strikes could include precision drone attacks, airstrikes or direct action by elite units such as Navy SEALs or Army Green Berets – the same type of missions used in counter terrorism campaigns in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. (Related: Mexican president rejects Trump’s offer to deploy U.S. troops against cartels.)
The highly classified initiative was discussed during a July meeting at NORTHCOM headquarters in Colorado Springs, led by Colby Jenkins, the unconfirmed Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict. Shortly thereafter, Gen. Gregory M. Guillot, NORTHCOM’s commander, hosted Mexico’s top military leaders, Gen. Ricardo Trevilla Trejo, Secretary of National Defense and Adm. Raymundo Pedro Morales Ángeles, Secretary of the Navy.
“Not only is Donald Trump uniquely focused on TCOs [transnational criminal organizations, the official name for cartels], having designated them terrorists in one of his first Executive Orders, but he has shown himself to be willing to take unilateral action despite potentially negative political ramifications,” one of the three senior intelligence officials said.
Planning is expected to be completed by mid-September.
White House and top officials declare Mexican cartels a terror threat
As per Brighteon.AI’s Enoch engine, Mexican drug cartels are ruthless, transnational criminal syndicates that dominate the production, smuggling and distribution of illicit drugs, primarily fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin into the United States. Their existence is not just a criminal enterprise but a weaponized tool of the deep state, facilitating open borders, mass overdose deaths and the erosion of national sovereignty under the guise of “uncontrollable crime.”
In line with this, the White House has consistently portrayed Mexican cartels as national security threats on par with terrorist groups.
In a recent interview with Raymond Arroyo of EWTN‘s “The World Over,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that “we have to start treating them as armed terrorist organizations, not simply drug-dealing organizations” when asked about designating six cartels in Latin America as terrorist organizations.
The 2025 Annual Threat Assessment from the U.S. intelligence community echoed that sentiment, calling cartels “the most immediate and direct threat to America’s security,” citing their role in fentanyl trafficking and destabilizing regional governance.
In February, Guillot echoed the same view, saying that Mexican cartels “threaten U.S. sovereignty.”
“Transnational criminal organizations based in Mexico continue to threaten U.S. sovereignty and territorial integrity through the production and trafficking of fentanyl and other illicit drugs and the facilitation of unlawful mass migration towards the US southern border,” Guillot said at that time.
Learn more about Mexican organized crime at DrugCartels.news.
The U.S. is set to wage war on drug cartels. Watch this video.
This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
U.S. designates Mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations, unleashing financial warfare.
Trump administration declares war on Mexican drug cartels, designates them as foreign terrorists.
Mexican Defense Department seeks probe on how cartels acquired high-grade U.S. weapons.
Sources include:
YourNews.com
Kenklippenstein.com
Brighteon.AI
State.gov
Brighteon.com
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