Two U.S. Navy SEALs went missing late this week during a mission in the waters off the coast of Somalia, U.S. officials said.
The SEALs were conducting a nighttime interdiction mission on Thursday where they were climbing up onto a vessel when one got knocked off by powerful ocean waves, the Associated Press reported. Following protocol, the next Navy SEAL up jumped into the water to help rescue him.
A search and rescue operation is underway for both SEALs in the warm waters of the Gulf of Aden, the report said, noting that the U.S. Navy has increased activity in the area to stop weapons from being shipped to Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen.
U.S. Central Command would not confirm details about the two individuals who were missing, other than identifying them as “sailors” who were “were forward-deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet (C5F) area of operations supporting a wide variety of missions.”
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The news comes as the Biden administration finally began taking military action against the Houthis late this week following dozens of terrorist attacks on international merchant vessels over the last couple of months in the Red Sea.
“Since Nov. 19, 2023, Iranian-backed Houthi militants have attempted to attack and harass vessels in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden 28 times,” CENTCOM said. “These illegal incidents include attacks that have employed anti-ship ballistic missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, and cruise missiles.”
“These strikes have no association with and are separate from Operation Prosperity Guardian, a defensive coalition of over 20 countries operating in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and Gulf of Aden,” the statement added.