A U.S. Navy ship and aircraft were on the verge of missing on Monday, as details of a mission to board and hijack a ship carrying parts for an Iranian intermediate-range ballistic missile bound for Somalia emerged, U.S. defense officials said. A search was conducted around the Gulf of Aden in search of two US Navy SEALs. Said.
Officials said the SEAL mission was unrelated to Operation Prosperity Guardian, the ongoing U.S. and international mission to protect commercial shipping in the Red Sea, or the retaliatory strikes carried out by the U.S. and Britain in Yemen. The past two days.
The official said the crew of the flagless dhow was planning to transfer the missile components, including the warhead and engine, to another ship off the coast of Somalia.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details have not been made public, said the Navy recognized the ship as one with a history of transporting illegal weapons from Iran to Somalia.
The SEALs were aboard the USS Lewis B Puller, a Navy expeditionary sea-based ship, and arrived on the boat in a small special operations combat boat operated by a Navy special warfare crew. While boarding the ship in rough seas at around 8pm local time, a seal was blown away by high waves and his teammates followed him aboard. Both are missing.
The team boarded a small boat and was confronted by more than a dozen crew members. The detained crew members had no documents, so the ship could be searched. Weapons were confiscated and the boat sunk, usually through the routine procedure of blasting holes in the hull.
U.S. officials said waters in the Gulf of Aden are warm and Navy SEALs are trained for such emergencies. On Monday, navy ships, helicopters and drones joined the ongoing search.
The U.S. Navy conducts regular interdiction missions in the region, including intercepting weapons on ships bound for the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen.
