Kelly urged military personnel not to obey illegal orders regarding bombings of suspected drug trafficking vessels
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced on Monday the revocation of Democratic Senator Mark Kelly’s military retirement pension, after Kelly urged disobedience of any illegal orders in the context of deadly attacks on suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific, which Hegseth considers “seditious” behavior.
“He has characterized legitimate military operations as illegal and has advised members of the Armed Forces to refuse legitimate orders,” Hegseth said in an official statement, warning that this constitutes “conduct of a seditious nature” as defined in Articles 133 and 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
Hegseth emphasized that Kelly is a retired Navy captain and therefore “remains accountable to military justice.” For this reason, the Department of Defense “has initiated proceedings to reduce his retirement pension.”
Kelly and five other members of Congress—Elissa Slotkin, Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander, Chris Deluzio, and Chrissy Houlahan—urged US soldiers to “reject illegal orders” in a video. “No one has to obey orders that are contrary to the law or our Constitution (…). Know that we support you. Don’t abandon the ship,” they said.
Following the video’s release, US President Donald Trump called Kelly and the other members of Congress in the recording “traitors” and attributed to them “seditious behavior punishable by death.”
Kelly served in the US Navy and retired with the rank of captain. He served two tours in the Persian Gulf and has also been an instructor at the Naval Flight School. He would only be subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice if he were called back to active duty as a reservist. His statements come in response to U.S. airstrikes against suspected drug trafficking vessels, which have killed at least 112 people to date in the Caribbean and Pacific waters, according to U.S. figures. These actions have been condemned by the UN and human rights organizations, which consider them extrajudicial killings.
