US Central Command said in a post on X that the strike – just as the previous three – occurred in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

The four new fatalities raise the total death toll of the controversial military campaign to at least 174, according to a tally compiled by AFP.

Two people were killed in a strike on Monday, while CENTCOM said two strikes on Saturday had killed five people and left one survivor.

President Donald Trump’s administration insists it is effectively at war with what it calls “narco-terrorists” operating in Latin America.

But it has provided no definitive evidence that the vessels it targets are involved in drug trafficking, prompting heated debate about the legality of the operations.

International legal experts and rights groups say the strikes likely amount to extrajudicial killings as they have apparently targeted civilians who do not pose an immediate threat to the US.