The US military announced on Tuesday that it had confiscated Iranian-made missile parts that were on their way to the Houthi rebels from a boat in the Arabian Sea, the first such seizure since the Houthis began their attacks on commercial ships.
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“This is the first seizure of advanced lethal conventional weapons (ACW) supplied by Iran to the Houthis since the Houthis began attacks on commercial ships in November 2023,” the US Army Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
This operation, carried out on January 11, enabled the seizure of weapons including “ballistic and cruise missile components,” the press release said.
This text also indicates that two US Marines, who have been missing off the Somali coast since Thursday evening, participated in the operation.
They are both members of the Marine Corps, an elite commando force. Michael Kurella, head of the US military command for the Middle East, Central and South Asia (Centcom), said that “intensive searches” were still underway to locate them.
The two sailors were on a mission with the US Fifth Fleet, which operates in a wide area that includes the Arabian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Gulf of Oman, and parts of the Indian Ocean. Its headquarters are located in Manama, Bahrain.
The missile parts were seized on board a dhow, a traditional Arab sailboat, operated by a crew of 14 people. The US Army General Staff said the boat was considered dangerous and sank.
