> U.S. military creates new command to target spic drug cartels in the Americas. MOAR DEAD BEANERS, STAT!!!!!

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U.S. military creates new command to target cartels in the Americas By Antonio María Delgado August 4, 2026 6:29 PM Gift IconGift Article US military fighter F35-A jets sit on the tarmac at José Aponte de la Torre Airport, formerly Roosevelt Roads Naval Station, on December 26, 2025 in Ceiba, Puerto Rico. The United States has deployed a major military force in the Caribbean and has recently intercepted oil tankers as part of a naval blockade against Venezuelan vessels it considers to be under sanctions. Since September, US forces have launched dozens of air strikes on boats that Washington alleges, without showing evidence, were transporting drugs. More than 220 people have been killed. (Photo by Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP via Getty Images) U.S. military fighter F35-A jets sit on the tarmac in Ceiba, Puerto Rico, on Dec. 26, 2025. MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO AFP via Getty Images The U.S. Southern Command has activated a new military headquarters to coordinate operations against drug cartels and other transnational criminal organizations across the Western Hemisphere, marking a significant reorganization of the military’s regional security mission. The new Joint Task Force–Western Hemisphere, activated Monday, replaces Joint Task Force Southern Spear, a temporary command established in 2025, with a permanent headquarters responsible for coordinating military operations with partner nations across Latin America and the Caribbean. SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan described the new organization as the military’s “action arm” for the hemisphere, saying it would intensify pressure on criminal organizations that threaten the United States and its regional allies. “We will locate, close with, and destroy these threats,” Donovan said in a video announcing the activation. “We will apply total systemic friction to these organizations... We are now changing the game.” The activation is the latest step in the Trump administration’s effort to expand the military’s role in combating transnational criminal organizations alongside regional partners. Unlike its predecessor, the new task force is designed as a permanent operational headquarters, bringing intelligence, surveillance, operational planning and multinational military coordination under a single command. The headquarters will operate alongside the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, an alliance of 18 countries established earlier this year to strengthen intelligence sharing and coordinate regional operations against organized crime. According to SOUTHCOM, which is based in Doral, the command will integrate intelligence and surveillance capabilities, support maritime interdiction operations, oversee multinational planning and expand joint military training with partner nations. It will also coordinate humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations when needed. Donovan selected Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Kevin Jarrard to lead the new headquarters. Jarrard most recently commanded U.S. military support for State Department-led disaster relief operations following the devastating June earthquakes in Venezuela. Although SOUTHCOM did not identify specific criminal organizations, officials said the headquarters will maintain sustained pressure on drug-trafficking networks and other groups that undermine regional security. The activation also formalizes a broader restructuring within SOUTHCOM. Joint Task Force Southern Spear, created in October 2025 under the II Marine Expeditionary Force, has now been replaced by a standing headquarters intended to provide continuous command and control for regional military operations. Military officials said the new structure is designed to improve coordination with allied governments, accelerate decision-making and increase the tempo of multinational operations against criminal organizations operating across national borders. SOUTHCOM said the creation of the new task force reinforces its broader strategy of combining military capabilities with multinational partnerships to strengthen regional security while enhancing the command’s ability to respond rapidly to crises throughout the Western Hemisphere.