Two U.S. Navy SEALs went missing Thursday off the coast of Somalia, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement.
The command said search and rescue operations are ongoing to find the sailors, who were not named.
According to the Associated Press, the SEALs were on a nighttime interdiction mission, climbing up a vessel when one got knocked off by high waves. Under their protocol, when one SEAL is overtaken the next jumps in after them, officials said.
CENTCOM did not provide any more details, which they said was out of respect for the sailors’ families.
The sailors were deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet’s area of operations, which covers various missions in areas like the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea.
Two U.S. officials told the Associated Press the search and rescue is underway in the warm waters of the Gulf of Aden.
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