Senator Cotton says he has no objection to releasing video of the raid that killed two survivors

The Republican who leads the Senate Intelligence Committee said Sunday that video of a U.S. military strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean that killed two survivors of the initial attack shows “nothing remarkable,” and that he would not be opposed to releasing it publicly if the Pentagon declassified it.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, who supports President Donald Trump’s campaign against suspected drug traffickers, is partly siding with Trump and top Democrats in favor of releasing the video of the Sept. 2 attack. This was the first in a series of US strikes lasting several months on ships near Venezuela that the administration says were transporting drugs. At least 87 people were killed in 22 known raids.

But Cotton, among senior lawmakers on national security committees briefed by the Navy admiral leading those strikes on Thursday, split with Democrats over whether military personnel acted lawfully in carrying out a second strike to kill survivors. The nine other people on board were also killed.

“I think it’s really important that this video was released,” said Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee. “And it has not escaped anyone’s attention, of course, that the interpretation of the video…differed strictly along partisan lines.” He said he had spent “years watching videos of lethal acts captured, often in the context of terrorism, and that video was deeply disturbing.”

When Trump was asked on Wednesday whether he would release the video of that subsequent strike, he told reporters: “I don’t know what they have, but whatever they have we’ll definitely release it. No problem.” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an interview with Fox News on Saturday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California that officials were reviewing the video. “Whatever we decide to release, we have to be very responsible” about it.

“This boat was still a legitimate target,” Cotton said, considering that publishing the video would prove that the two survivors of the initial strike still posed a threat.

“It’s not a terrible thing. I didn’t find it sad or disturbing,” he said, explaining that he had no problem publishing all the footage. “This appears to be similar to any number of dozens of strikes we have seen on Jeeps and pickup trucks in the Middle East over the years.” He added: “There is nothing special about this video in my opinion.”

The secret sessions on Capitol Hill came after The Washington Post reported that Admiral Frank “Mitch” Bradley ordered a subsequent attack that killed those survivors, in compliance with Hegseth’s demands. Bradley told lawmakers there was no “kill them all” order from Hegseth, but video of the entire series of attacks raised serious questions for some lawmakers. Legal experts said killing survivors of a strike at sea could constitute a violation of the military laws of war.

He watches: Democratic congressman is “deeply concerned” about the legality of boat strikes after seeing the video

Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, and Himes were among those who viewed the video and took issue with Cotton’s characterization.

“I have no doubt that these men were involved in drug trafficking… but in this case, these men were on the verge of death,” Hymes said.

“It does not appear that these two survivors were in a position to continue fighting,” Smith added.

Himes said lawmakers recognize the partisan divide.

Some legal experts have questioned that the United States is in formal armed conflict with Venezuela, raising questions about the legalities of using US military personnel in what could amount to law enforcement activities requiring due process. Other experts said that regardless of the terms of the engagement, international law does not permit further attacks on unarmed survivors of a previous attack. Specifically, Pentagon protocols state that shooting shipwrecked persons is illegal.

There have been questions and criticism of the mission raised by lawmakers from both parties on Capitol Hill, as the investigation continues.

Bradley told lawmakers in a closed session that he ordered the second attack on the wreckage of a boat carrying cocaine because he believed packages of the drug were still in the boat’s hull.

Cotton said Sunday that the two latest victims “were not shipwrecked” or “floating helplessly in the water” but were instead “sitting or standing on top of a capsized boat.” He added that “they were not helpless, so this boat and its cargo… remained valid targets.”

“The boat was clearly incapacitated,” said Smith, who watched the same video. “A small part of it remained upside down, which was the front of the boat. They didn’t have a communication device. And they certainly weren’t armed.”

Cotton was on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Smith was on ABC’s “This Week,” and Himes appeared on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”