this post was submitted on 01 Dec 2025
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Press secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed the apparent war crime was legal even as she said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth knew nothing about it.

The White House on Monday shifted the blame for killing the survivors of a U.S. military strike on an alleged drug smuggling boat from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and onto the commanding admiral.

Killing survivors of a destroyed vessel is literally an example of a war crime in the U.S. Department of Defense Law of War Manual. “For example, orders to fire upon the shipwrecked would be clearly illegal,” the manual reads.

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt, nevertheless, repeatedly stated that it was legal – even as she further claimed, as Donald Trump did Sunday, that Hegseth was unaware that it had happened.

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[–] betanumerus@lemmy.ca 29 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Confirming the military should not follow through with illegal orders.

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[–] Bakkoda@sh.itjust.works 19 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Dear America,

You are disposable to them.

[–] technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 2 days ago

Dear ~~America~~ Earth,

You are disposable to them.

[–] 0nt0p0fth3w0rld@feddit.org 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

and i really wish people would understand it was that way before trump too. trump admin is a little more extreme and blunt about it.

America is a nation of purposely indoctrinated naivety and privilege that provides escapism from honest humanity. Its not just the government its the culture of arrogance. Some how you are all proud and willing to pay for people to be killed so you can remain free-range cattle for a nation of business to profits off and manipulates and uses your entire existence.

America is a threat to humanity as a whole.

[–] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 10 points 2 days ago (2 children)

This demonstrates another reason why you shouldn't obey clearly illegal orders. If you kill someone on the illegal order of a superior and then they deny having given the order, guess who's gonna hang for it?

[–] KingGimpicus@sh.itjust.works 2 points 2 days ago

Nobody, apparently. They think that if they pass the blame enough, most people will forget it ever even happened. They are right.

Until we start lynching killer cops in the streets, they'll never even think about holding their own accountable. It is only the threat of direct, immediate consequences that will have any effect on the status quo

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[–] phoenixz@lemmy.ca 14 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Do you want the military to coup d'etat your ass? Because throwing your admiral under a ~~bus~~ boat will make many military leaders think...

Eh, what am I saying? Please keep throwing them, we all want a coup at this point

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[–] technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com 11 points 2 days ago

This is the whole point of "chain of command". The suckers are at the bottom. This admiral should be grateful that he's not dead in the ditch somewhere like his victims abroad and in the lower ranks.

[–] xxce2AAb@feddit.dk 216 points 4 days ago (1 children)

And this is one of the many, many good reasons why one does not comply with illegal orders, damn it!

[–] 0_o7@lemmy.dbzer0.com 20 points 4 days ago (2 children)

Ah, yes the most upstanding army that didn't comply to illegal orders in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria et al.

The fuck you guys smoking?

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 15 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (2 children)
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[–] xxce2AAb@feddit.dk 20 points 4 days ago (1 children)

That just underscores the point I made.

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[–] resipsaloquitur@lemmy.world 52 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Hey military— see what happens when you obey illegal orders?

⤵️🚌

[–] UltraMagnus@startrek.website 6 points 2 days ago

Admiral should've remembered the oldest rule in the military... "shit always rolls downhill." Don't think for a second that your superior will cover for you when something like this happens, even if they gave the order and should also be held accountable.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 8 points 3 days ago (2 children)

I mean, probably nothing. Its not like anyone is going to investigate or prosecute. Trump's just throwing up chaff so he can whine about the press treating him unfairly. "We didn't do it, but if we did it would have been based and cool, and don't think we won't do the thing we didn't do again if we feel like it" is exactly what I'd have expected to hear from a PR flack in the Bush or Reagan Era.

Hell, I'm pretty sure this is the line Bush Sr used when the US shot down that Iranian passenger airliner. Nobody suffered any kind of consequence for that, either. Hell, the air warfare coordinator on duty received the Navy Commendation Medal after killing a few hundred civilians.

I bet Trump's Navy Command is going to look like late-stage Brezhnev by the time he's finished passing out pins and ribbons for civilian casualties.

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[–] UnspecificGravity@infosec.pub 106 points 4 days ago (4 children)

Oh look, exactly what Mark Kelly was talking about. Shit rolls down hill guys. Remember that when someone orders you to murder people.

[–] massacre@lemmy.world 36 points 4 days ago

The top brass who aren't full on MAGA, but didn't leave now have clear proof that they are expendable and will be scapegoated to protect Trump and his croneys. Honestly showing their hand at this stage gives me a lot of hope that any coup won't happen now and resistance will be strengthened from within. I smell leaks coming!

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[–] jaybone@lemmy.zip 70 points 4 days ago (4 children)

Follow illegal orders, get thrown under the bus.

Dont follow illegal orders, get thrown under the bus.

[–] mrgoosmoos@lemmy.ca 37 points 3 days ago (2 children)

you know I'm starting to think that maybe they should just deal with the people giving the orders

[–] khaleer@sopuli.xyz 17 points 3 days ago

That's very uncommon for brainwashed crowd called "military" to do so.

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[–] RampantParanoia2365@lemmy.world 16 points 3 days ago (2 children)

I guess we can add "war criminal" or straight up "murderer" to Trump's list of accomplishments. It's his administration.

[–] technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Yes, this is literally every president.

[–] RampantParanoia2365@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

True, but politics is always going to be messy. Even if Bernie Sanders took the office, I'm sure he'd have to make lots of awful decisions. But even though Obama authorized drone strikes, I doubt he ever gave orders to kill everyone, or just arbitrarily struck fishing boats because he got off on it. Maybe Obama is a war criminal, but I think he really did feel bad about it. It's been established that Trump very literally, as in literally literally gets aroused by deporting people.

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[–] myfunnyaccountname@lemmy.zip 58 points 4 days ago (2 children)

I can’t believe it was Joe Biden that flew the plane.

[–] Proles_Uprising_Now@lemmy.world 32 points 4 days ago (2 children)

I heard Obama told him too

[–] regedit@lemmy.zip 28 points 3 days ago (3 children)

Hillary coordinated it all from email!

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[–] givesomefucks@lemmy.world 100 points 4 days ago (6 children)

Killing survivors of a destroyed vessel is literally an example of a war crime in the U.S. Department of Defense Law of War Manual. “For example, orders to fire upon the shipwrecked would be clearly illegal,” the manual reads.

RTFM

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[–] Archangel1313@lemmy.ca 77 points 4 days ago

As they should. But the fact that he chose to follow an obviously illegal order, doesn't absolve the ones who gave that order. This should in no way, take the heat off Hegseth...or Trump himself.

[–] SaraTonin@lemmy.world 30 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Can it be a war crime if you’re not actually at war? Seems like it’s just murder.

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 33 points 3 days ago (5 children)

Don't need to be at war to commit "war crimes"

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[–] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 58 points 4 days ago (2 children)

So we went from denial, to it happened but it wasn't us...

[–] Instigate@aussie.zone 30 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

The Narcissist’s Prayer:

That didn't happen.
And if it did, it wasn't that bad.
And if it was, that's not a big deal.
And if it is, that's not my fault. <— we are here
And if it was, I didn't mean it.
And if I did, you deserved it.

[–] ThePowerOfGeek@lemmy.world 24 points 4 days ago (1 children)

I think we're currently in the phase where it's rapidly undulating between both takes.

Give it another week and it'll devolve into "what firing on shipwrecked people? What are you talking about? Lalalala, I can't hear you!"

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[–] AdolfSchmitler@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

I mean did you expect anyone in maga to take responsibility for anything negative?

As was said elsewhere, the transmitted command will have been recorded. The hard undeniable truth can be provided. Congress just needs to subpoena it, or a soldier with a conscience needs to whistleblow and leak it. Otherwise, we trust the liars' word and they get away with yet more of what are unquestionably, objectively, war crimes.

[–] DandomRude@lemmy.world 37 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (3 children)

We also don't fight with stupid rules of engagement. We untie the hands of our warfighters to intimidate, demoralize, hunt and kill the enemies of our country. No more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement, just common sense, maximum lethality and authority for warfighters.

Pete Hegseth [Source]

[–] prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 3 days ago (1 children)

warfighters

I fucking hate the way this LARPer talks about armed forces

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[–] BigMacHole@sopuli.xyz 43 points 4 days ago

It was LEGAL but ALSO Pete Hegseth DIDNT know about it AND we Fired someone Over it!

[–] ceenote@lemmy.world 45 points 4 days ago (1 children)

If he ordered it, or complied with the order from above, lock him up. If not, this accusation is yet another confession.

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[–] flango@lemmy.eco.br 33 points 4 days ago

First of all, blowing up a boat like is illegal. Even if it was legal you'll have to prove that the boat contained drugs, but you just blowed your evidences! The guys that survived the attack then would have no charges over them and would be set free. Probably these guys were innocent and the boat was not a drug boat, thus they killed them as a cover up

[–] Lushed_Lungfish@lemmy.ca 29 points 4 days ago (1 children)

As a sailor, I find the whole shoddy affair most disgusting.

Yes in war (and this was by no means a war) we may seek to kill one another as enemies, but every sailor knows, it is the sea who is the ultimate enemy.

A human adrift at sea is a pitiful thing. To save them is to save ourselves.

[–] regedit@lemmy.zip 18 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Even in WWII, the German Navy refused Hitler's illegal orders and outright saved or radioed the location of boats they sunk and survivors in the water, even to the peril of their crew stealth. It pissed Hitler off early in the war.

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[–] HocEnimVeni@lemmy.world 35 points 4 days ago

Hmm, I wonder why Admiral Holsey decided to retire when he did. 🤔

[–] DrFistington@lemmy.world 36 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (4 children)

Ok... So common sense would read that as: ' it wasn't legal, it's a prime example of a war crime, and Pete may not have explicitly approved of that action, but probably gave a vague order like 'no survivors' , which the admiral took literally, and so it's entirely the admirals fault for not disobeying an unlawful order. '

All I want for Christmas is a military coup, cold hard justice for the traitors enabling Trump, and emergency elections, monitored by the military, and un observers

[–] UnspecificGravity@infosec.pub 20 points 4 days ago

Ordering that operations be conducted on the basis that there be "no survivors" is also specifically cited as an example of a war crime by the same manual: "Moreover, it is also prohibited to conduct hostilities on the basis that there shall be no survivors, or to threaten the adversary with the denial of quarter."

Page 211 https://media.defense.gov/2023/Jul/31/2003271432/-1/-1/0/DOD-LAW-OF-WAR-MANUAL-JUNE-2015-UPDATED-JULY%202023.PDF

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