This is CNN Breaking News.

And welcome to the lead. I'm Jake Tapper, and we begin with the breaking news on our world lead right now.

President Trump is convening a White House meeting of his top national security officials to discuss the next steps regarding Venezuela.

Now, perhaps you're sitting out there wondering why do there need to be next steps with regard to Venezuela?

And if so, you are not alone. Why we're even discussing military action against the nation of Venezuela is a topic that the President has yet to explain in any full or satisfying way.

Still, the meeting comes as the administration is intensifying its pressure campaign on the country because of narcotics trafficking that comes from that country.

The U.S. since September 2nd, has fired upon and sunk 22 boats of alleged narco-traffickers, killing more than 80 people.

The U.S. military has amassed an armada in the region,

more than a dozen warships and 15,000 troops

as part of what the Pentagon has branded Operation Southern Spear.

And President Trump is teasing looming warfare,

warning that the country's airspace,

Venezuelan airspace, should be considered closed

and saying that the U.S. would be

stopping Venezuelan drug trafficking by land, in addition to by sea, quote, very soon.

Now, this White House-Venezuela meeting also comes as the administration is for the first time

acknowledging a September follow-up strike on an alleged drug boat, known as a

double tap, as the Pentagon is facing growing questions about the legality of that move and the

campaign in general. Now, the concession comes following reporting from CNN's Natasha Bertrand,

as well as others at the Washington Post and The Intercept, that the U.S. carried out this double tap after

the initial attack, which a source told CNN that defense secretary Pete Hagseth said needed to

kill everyone on board, and were told that that first strike did not kill everyone on board.

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