U.S. officials have yet to cite the legal authority that justified Tuesday's airstrike on an alleged Venezuelan drug smuggling boat in international waters, as criticism mounts from legal experts.

Meanwhile, the U.S. has ordered the deployment of 10 F-35 fighter jets to a Puerto Rico airfield to conduct operations against drug cartels, two sources briefed on the matter told Reuters in a report published Friday. The advanced fighter jets add to a more muscular presence in the southern Caribbean by the U.S. military in recent weeks.

The strike, announced Tuesday by U.S. President Donald Trump and members of his administration, killed 11 people. The White House said the boat carried members of Tren de Aragua, a gang the administration alleges is closely linked to the government of Venezuela

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