Battle of the Red Sea Claims First American Lives as Pentagon Declares Missing Navy SEALs ‘Deceased’
The two special operators went missing after attempting to board a ship carrying Iranian weapons destined for Houthi rebels in Yemen.
The Defense Department has declared two missing Navy SEALs deceased after they presumably drowned in the Gulf of Aden during America’s campaign against the Houthis. They are the first casualties in the campaign.
“We regret to announce that 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,” the American Central Command said in a statement. “The search and rescue operation for the two Navy SEALs reported missing during the boarding of an illicit dhow carrying Iranian advanced conventional weapons January 11 concluded and we are now conducting recovery operations.”
The two SEALs went overboard after one of them was knocked off the side of the ship they were boarding by high waves. The second operator then jumped into the water in an attempt to save his fellow serviceman.
The search and rescue operations included the navies and air forces of America, Japan, and Spain. Over the course of the search, the coalition scoured more than 21,000 square miles of open ocean looking for the servicemen.
“We mourn the loss of our two Naval Special Warfare warriors, and we will forever honor their sacrifice and example. Our prayers are with the SEALs’ families, friends, the U.S. Navy, and the entire Special Operations community during this time,” said the commander of CENTCOM, General Michael Erik Kurilla.
America’s military, as part of its campaign against the Houthis aimed at protecting global shipping lanes, has been conducting missions to intercept weapons from Iran bound for Yemen.
Earlier this month, America and its ally the United Kingdom began a bombing campaign against targets in Yemen. When asked if the strikes on Houthi targets were achieving their goal of deterring Houthi attacks on cargo ships and civilian commercial vessels, President Biden recently said they were not.
“When you say working, are they stopping the Houthis?” Mr. Biden said to reporters at the White House when asked about the campaign. “No. Are they going to continue? Yes.”
