According to three U.S. officials, two U.S. Navy SEALs are currently missing after a nighttime boarding mission off the coast of Somalia. The SEALs were engaged in an interdiction mission and while climbing up a vessel, one of them was knocked off by high waves.
Following their protocol, the second SEAL jumped in after the first. Unfortunately, both SEALs are still missing. A search and rescue mission is currently underway in the warm waters of the Gulf of Aden where they were operating.
It is important to note that this mission is unrelated to Operation Prosperity Guardian, the ongoing mission to protect commercial vessels in the Red Sea, or the recent retaliatory strikes in Yemen. Additionally, it is not connected to the seizure of the oil tanker St. Nikolas by Iran. The U.S. Navy regularly conducts interdiction missions to intercept weapons on ships bound for Houthi-controlled Yemen.
The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, provided these details that have not yet been made public.
The U.S. military, in addition to defending ships from attacks launched from Houthi-controlled areas, also assists commercial ships targeted by piracy.
U.S. Central Command has stated that no further information will be released until the personnel recovery mission is completed. The missing sailors were deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations, supporting various missions.
