"Hegseth says U.S. has "only just begun" sinking alleged drug vessels

"We've only just begun striking narco-boats and putting narco-terrorists at the bottom of the ocean because they've been poisoning the American people," Hegseth said from the president's side.

The Defense Department's Law of War Manual uses shooting shipwrecked survivors as an example of an illegal order that service members are obligated to refuse.

The manual also states that those "who have been incapacitated by wounds, sickness, or shipwreck are in a helpless state, and it would be dishonorable and inhumane to make them the object of attack."