Two missing US Navy SEALs presumed dead after anti-Iran mission
The U.S. military said two Navy Seals who went missing during a mission on Jan. 11 to seize Iranian weapons bound for Yemen’s Houthis are now presumed dead.
“After a 10-day exhaustive search, our two missing U.S Navy SEALs have not been located and their status has been changed to deceased,” Central Command said in a statement.
It didn’t explain exactly how they died. Several U.S media reports have said it appears to have been due to accidental drowning in rough seas. The two commandos were climbing a ladder to board a vessel when one was knocked into the sea and the second jumped in to try to help the other. The two SEALs were part of a team that boarded a dhow near the coast of Somalia. The U.S forces sunk the boat after they seized components for ballistic and cruise missiles. U.S fatalities on such missions are rare. The navy said it was the first such interception of Iranian-supplied advanced weapons to the Houthis since they began to attack ships in the Red Sea in mid-November.
