Could A Small Venezuelan Island Be The Real Reason Behind the U.S. Military’s Caribbean Buildup

Recent reporting highlights a sustained U.S. military buildup across the Caribbean, coinciding with briefings to President Trump in which senior Pentagon officials outlined potential operational scenarios against Venezuela. This activity has raised questions among observers about regime change operations. 

Public justification and the narrative in corporate media have centered on counter-narcotics missions aimed at disrupting transnational criminal networks operating in and around Venezuela. However, the scale and posture of U.S. forces have prompted speculation that this buildout might not just be about dismantling command and control structures of narco terrorist networks. 

In this 10-post X thread, Jason Lewris of real-time housing market data website Parcl Labs explored one potential cause for the U.S. military buildup and goes beyond drug smuggling, linking Venezuelan cartels and Iranian-backed groups (like Hezbollah). 

“But drug smuggling may not be the full story—or the real motivation,” Lewris began the tread. He said, “A far more concerning pattern is emerging.” 

“Here’s how a small Venezuelan island (Isla de Margarita), Iranian-backed terrorist groups, and U.S. housing may all connect within a sophisticated people-transportation network into the United States,” Lewris explained. 

The @WhiteHouse has been releasing videos of U.S. forces blowing up drug-smuggling boats as if they’re Superbowl ads.

They’ve quietly mobilized additional military assets to Puerto Rico.

But drug smuggling may not be the full story—or the real motivation.

A far more concerning… pic.twitter.com/Ic3eJSYlVb

— Jason Lewris (@jasonlewris) November 16, 2025

Lewris cited a text from a 2013 House Foreign Affairs Committee on the subject of “Hezbollah’s STRATEGIC SHIFT: A GLOBAL TERRORIST THREAT.” 

At a House hearing on March 20, 2013, lawmakers were briefed that Isla de Margarita (Margarita Island) was being used by Hezbollah to train Venezuelan cartel members.

This partnership isn’t new.

It’s more than a decade old.

And the island has been strategically used as a hub… pic.twitter.com/TIROihXFM1

— Jason Lewris (@jasonlewris) November 16, 2025

With the text, Lewris pointed out, “Hezbollah has also conducted terror training on Margarita Island for recruits from Venezuela and other Latin American countries. Hezbollah operatives and their co-conspirators hold senior positions in the Venezuelan Government. They provide travel documents, weapons, and logistics support to terrorist operations and cocaine smugglers as our witnesses will explain further.” 

Timing of the Caribbean operation is critical to understand, according to Lewris.

Weeks later, the White House suddenly begins distributing polished footage of U.S. forces destroying smuggling boats.

The timing is…notable. https://t.co/ILkCjk8rcM

— Jason Lewris (@jasonlewris) November 16, 2025

Here are the key points from the thread:

• U.S. Military Actions as Cover? The White House has ramped up releases of dramatic videos showing U.S. forces destroying drug-smuggling boats (e.g., recent strikes in the Eastern Pacific killing 6 “narco-terrorists”). This follows U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025 and includes quiet military buildups in Puerto Rico, suggesting a broader response to threats.

• Historical Ties on Margarita Island: Since at least 2013 (per a House hearing), Venezuela’s Isla de Margarita has served as a Hezbollah training hub for local cartels, facilitating exchanges of tactics and resources. Iran and Venezuela’s long-standing alliance amplifies this.

• Smuggling Operations: Established cartel routes across the Caribbean could now transport people, potentially terrorist operatives, rather than just drugs. Dense clusters of Venezuelan/Iranian-owned U.S. properties (via shell companies tied to their governments) near the southern border provide safe havens, built up over years.

And if that alone sounded troubling, what comes next points to a national security threat.

Rubio might find this interesting… 

The alarming part:

Venezuela and Iran already own U.S. properties-many through shell companies with direct ties to their governments.

And there are dense pockets of these holdings along the southern border.

These properties didn’t appear overnight.

They’ve been here for… pic.twitter.com/tHXVFyy0hL

— Jason Lewris (@jasonlewris) November 16, 2025

Lewris’ thesis: “U.S. officials understand the Iran–Venezuela partnership. They understand these smuggling routes, which historically moved drugs. But the concern now is that people, not drugs, are being moved. And those people may include terrorist operatives. We’re tracking the intersection of these networks with U.S. housing at @ParclLabs.”