The head of US Southern Command, the military commander overseeing US escalations in the Caribbean and the push toward an attempt at regime change in Venezuela, is stepping down, the Pentagon announced on Thursday.
According to a statement from SOUTHCOM Commander Adm. Alvin Holsey, who served in the position for less than a year, he will be retiring on December 12, 2024, ending a 37-year military career.
No reason was given for his resignation, but according to The New York Times, he had raised concerns about the US military mission in the Caribbean, which has involved a significant buildup of forces and the bombing of five boats that the Trump administration has claimed, without providing evidence, were carrying drugs.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth issued a statement on Holsey’s retirement and praised the admiral, but the Times report said that officials at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill said the praise “masked real policy tensions concerning Venezuela that the admiral and his civilian boss were seeking to paper over.”
Reuters also reported that a source said there had been tension between Holsey and Hegseth and questions about whether he would be fired in the days leading up to the announcement.
The Trump administration has come under significant criticism for its bombing campaign against alleged drug-running boats since the operations amount to extrajudicial executions. The Pentagon has also provided Congress with no hard evidence to back up its claims about the strikes.
US officials have also been clear that the real purpose of the military campaign is to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The administration has used drug trafficking as the pretext for the operations, pointing to the large number of overdose deaths in the US, but they are primarily caused by Fentanyl, which doesn’t come from Venezuela or travel through the country on its way to the US.
President Trump has recently authorized the CIA to conduct lethal covert operations inside Venezuela, as the US military is considering launching airstrikes directly against Venezuelan territory.
