Two U.S. Navy SEALs dead after missing in operation to seize Iranian weapons

WASHINGTON, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Joe Biden in a statement on Monday mourned the loss of two U.S. Navy SEALs, who were confirmed dead the previous day after missing for days in an operation in waters near East Africa to seize Iranian weapons.

Biden said in the statement that he and his wife, Jill Biden, "are mourning the tragic deaths of two of America's finest-Navy SEALs who were lost at sea while executing a mission off the coast of East Africa last week."

The two Navy SEALs' deaths were confirmed Sunday by the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which said in a press release that after 10 days of "exhaustive search," the service members "have not been located and their status has been changed to deceased."

The two Navy SEALs were reported missing while taking part in a Jan. 11 operation by the U.S. military off the coast of Somalia to seize what it said were Iranian weapon parts on a dhow.

The U.S. military claimed that the dhow was carrying "ballistic missile and cruise missiles components" to be supplied to the Houthi militant group in Yemen, who would then use them to attack international commercial vessels transiting through the Red Sea.

The dhow was ultimately sunk by U.S. Navy forces, with its 14 crewmembers awaiting a disposition, CENTCOM said in an earlier release.