Two American sailors have been reported missing after an incident off the coast of Somalia.
Somalia is located on the eastern edge of Africa across the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea from Yemen. Multiple American ships are in the region due to the war between Israel and Hamas as well as attacks on Red Sea shipping from the Houthis in Yemen.
U.S. Central Command issued a terse statement on Friday about the incident, which did not name the vessel involved.
“On the evening of January 11, two U.S. Navy Sailors were reported missing at sea while conducting operations off the coast of Somalia,” the statement said.
On the evening of January 11, two U.S. Navy Sailors were reported missing at sea while conducting operations off the coast of Somalia.
Search and rescue operations are currently ongoing to locate the two sailors
MORE ⬇️https://t.co/SQP9q7263A
— U.S. Fleet Forces (@USFleetForces) January 13, 2024
“Search and rescue operations are currently ongoing to locate the two sailors. For operational security purposes, we will not release additional information until the personnel recovery operation is complete,” the statement said.
“Out of respect for the families affected, we will not release further information on the missing personnel at this time,” the statement said.
“The sailors were forward-deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet (C5F) area of operations supporting a wide variety of missions,” the statement concluded.
Pray they find these Sailors, please. https://t.co/5AJAxB5282
— Katie (@KatesMusings2) January 13, 2024
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A report from ABC said the two missing service members are Navy SEALs.
The report, citing an official ABC did not name, said that the incident took place as the SEALs were attempting to board a vessel in the Gulf of Aden.
The official did not provide the reason why the vessel was being boarded.
The ABC report said one SEAL went into the water, followed by the second.
An official CNN did not name said the incident took place where there were eight-foot swells on the sea.
A US official says the two US sailors missing off the coast of Somalia were boarding a vessel when one fell due to 8ft swells, and the second jumped in to save them per protocol.
NAVCENT leading search and rescue.
CENTCOM’s release yesterday: https://t.co/mJMWvhV5yy
— Haley Britzky (@halbritz) January 13, 2024
The official told CNN that operational protocols are such that if one member of a team falls into the water during an attempt to board a vessel, a second individual tries to save the team member by jumping in the water for a rescue.
The 5th Fleet’s area of operations covers the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea and Indian Ocean, according to the fleet’s website.
