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A top US commander has briefed lawmakers on Capitol Hill over a controversial follow-up strike that killed two survivors of a suspected drug-smuggling boat.

Some shit you should know before you dig in: Last week the Washington Post released a report citing sources who claimed that after a US missile strike destroyed a suspected drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean, two survivors were leftclinging to the wreckage before being killed in a second follow-up strike. The report suggested that the second attack may have been deliberately ordered to eliminate the survivors, who appeared to be unarmed, shirtless, and in clear distress. If true, this would constitute a war crime. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has since pushed back on that narrative, stating he watched the initial strike live but could not see any survivors due to the fire and smoke, adding that he only learned of the second strike later. He defended the military’s actions by attributing the situation to the “fog of war.”

What’s going on now: In a notable development, Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley, the commander who oversaw the operation, appeared on Capitol Hill for a series of closed-door classified briefings with key lawmakers on the House and Senate Intelligence and Armed Services Committees. Bradley pushed back on claims that he received a verbal directive from Defense Secretary Hegseth to execute survivors, telling lawmakers there was no “kill them all” order. He maintained that the decision to authorize the second strike was based on real-time assessments suggesting the survivors were in communication with a nearby “mothership,” indicating they were still active participants in the suspected drug operation and thus valid military targets under the mission’s rules of engagement.

Lawmakers who viewed the unedited video footage of the strikes came away deeply divided. Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, called the footage “one of the most disturbing things I’ve ever seen,” describing the survivors as clearly distressed, unarmed, and without any ability to flee or resist when they were killed.

On the other side, Republican lawmakers have largely defended Bradley’s actions. Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Tom Cotton said the footage showed the survivors attempting to flip the boat and reload it with drugs, arguing this constituted continued hostile intent. Cotton praised both Bradley and Hegseth for executing what he described as lawful and necessary military action and warned against criticizing commanders after the fact.