Two U.S Navy sailors missing off coast of Somalia: Central Command

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Two U.S Navy sailors were reported missing while conducting operations Thursday off the coast of Somalia, the U.S. Central Command said.

Search and rescue operations are currently ongoing, the statement said.

Officials said that the two sailors were reported missing on Thursday evening.

The brief statement gave no additional information about what the pair had been doing when they went missing.

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A plane comes into land over a secured beach area near the runway of Aden Adde International Airport at sun set on September 4, 2022 in Mogadishu, Somalia.  (Ed Ram/Getty Images))

CENTCOM said that the sailors were forward-deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet (C5F) area of operations and supported a “wide variety of missions.”

“Out of respect for the families affected, we will not release further information at this time,” the statement said.

Al-Shabab fighters conduct military exercise in northern Mogadishu’s Suqaholaha neighborhood, Somalia, Sunday, Sept. 5, 2010.  (AP Photo/ Farah Abdi Warsameh, file)

The U.S. has an estimated 450 military personnel in Somalia after President Biden reversed his predecessor Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. forces. 

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The U.S. provides military assistance in the East African country as it continues to battle, what the U.S. has called, “the largest and most deadly al-Qaida network in the world.”

(L-R) President of Mozambique Filipe Nyusi, President of Somalia Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of Niger Mohamed Bazoum, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrive for the Peace, Security, and Governance Forum during the U.S. – Africa Leaders Summit on December 13, 2022 in Washington, DC.  (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

In 2022, Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared “total war” on the thousands of al-Shabab extremists who for more than a decade have controlled parts of the country and carried out devastating attacks while exploiting clan divisions and extorting millions of dollars a year in their quest to impose an Islamic state.

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The U.S. supports Somali forces and a multinational African Union force with drone strikes, intelligence and training.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. 

She is a native of Massachusetts and is based in Orlando, Florida.

Story tips and ideas can be sent to sarah.rumpf@fox.com and on X: @s_rumpfwhitten.