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Four men were charged Thursday in federal court in relation to an incident that led to the death of two Navy SEALs in the Arabian Sea in January, according to the Department of Justice(DOJ). Muhammad Pahlawan, Mohammad Mazhar, Ghufran Ullah and Izhar Muhammad were charged in federal court in connection with the Jan. 11 incident in which Navy Special Warfare Operator 1st Class Christopher J. Chambers and Navy Special Warfare Operator 2nd Class Nathan Gage Ingram were swept overboard while seizing Iranian-made weapons in the Arabian Sea, according to a DOJ release. Ingram and Chambers were declared dead by the...

As they were boarding it in rough seas, around 8 p.m. local time, one SEAL got knocked off by high waves and a teammate went in after him. Both are missing. The team boarding the small boat was facing about a dozen crew members. The crew members, who were taken into custody, had no paperwork, which allowed a search of the vessel. The weapons were confiscated, and the boat was sunk, a routine procedure that usually involves blowing open holes in the hull.

The two Navy SEALs who went missing off the coast of Somalia last week were helping seize Iranian weapons bound for the Houthis, the US said in a statement on Tuesday. The Navy SEALs carried out a "complex boarding" of a dhow, operating out of the USS Lewis B. Puller and assisted by helicopters and unmanned aerial drones, CENTCOM said. (excerpt) Among what was seized were propulsion, guidance, and warheads for medium-range ballistic missiles and anti-ship cruise missiles, as well as air-defense-associated components, it said. (excerpt) The Associated Press earlier reported, citing unnamed US officials, that the pair were climbing...

U.S. 5th Fleet ships seized approximately 1,400 AK-47 assault rifles and 226,600 rounds of ammunition from a stateless fishing vessel during a flag verification boarding in accordance with customary international law in the North Arabian Sea, Dec. 20. U.S. Navy patrol coastal ships USS Tempest (PC 2) and USS Typhoon (PC 5) found the weapons during a search conducted by embarked U.S. Coast Guard personnel. The illicit weapons and ammunition were later transported to guided-missile destroyer USS O’Kane (DDG 77) where they await final disposition. The stateless vessel was assessed to have originated in Iran and transited international waters along...

Another shipment of AK-47 type rifles was seized in the Arabian sea on August 27th, 2018. The dhow carrying the cargo was in distress. It was not under power or under sail. It had no papers from any nation-state. This seems to be fairly common in the area. The boarding team  from the USS Jason Dunham found a thousand AK style rifles. No mention was made of ammunition or Rocket Propelled Grenades, another common small arm in the area. From navy.mil: The skiff was determined to be stateless following a flag verification boarding, conducted in accordance with international law....

In the four months to date for 2014, warships from the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) Task Force 150 (CTF 150) have seized in excess of 2,000 kg of heroin being trafficked in dhows via the Indian Ocean. The most recent seizure was of 1,032 kg by an Australian warship on 26 April - African’s highest drug seizure ever – and 130kg by a Canadian warship on 7 April. In 2013, warships operating with CTF 150 seized more than 2,000 kg of heroin being shipped via the Indian Ocean. The heroin appears to be of Afghan origin, and is generally of...

USS JFK Rescues Iranian Mariners in Arabian Gulf Story Number: NNS040814-01 Release Date: 8/14/2004 1:59:00 PM From Commander, Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander/Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Public Affairs ABOARD USS JOHN F. KENNEDY (NNS) -- USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) rescued six mariners from an Iranian cargo dhow Aug. 14, after learning that the vessel was taking on water. The distress signal was initially received by USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), which was operating with Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG) 3 in the Arabian Gulf. Because the vessel was more than 200 nautical miles away,...

Navy Investigates Warship Collision Associated Press WASHINGTON - The Navy is investigating how a small wooden boat was able to approach and ram into an aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf last month, military officials said. The collision appears to be accidental, Navy official says, but has renewed fears of suicide attacks against U.S. warships. Nearly four years ago, a deadly terrorist strike against a Navy destroyer in Yemen led to significant changes in the way the service deals with civilian craft. On the night of July 22, a dhow smashed into the starboard hull of the USS John F....

Carrier’s run-in with dhow raises red flags Officials seek answers after ship struck, sank small boat BY MATTHEW DOLAN THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT     How could a small boat designed for fishing in the Persian Gulf get so close to a multibilliondollar American carrier equipped with state-ofthe-art radar and armed with its own air force?     That’s the question Navy investigators are still asking after the carrier John F. Kennedy struck and sank the mysterious boat in the Persian Gulf on July 22.     No survivors or remains from the small boat, known as a dhow, have been recovered. The crew of the Mayport, Fla.-based...

[View JPEG Photo, 1046 KB] Over 50 bags of hashish litter the deck of the dhow intercepted in the Arabian Gulf. A U.S. Navy boarding team operating from the guided missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73) discovered an estimated two tons of narcotics with a street value of around eight to ten million dollars aboard a 40-foot dhow intercepted in the Arabian Gulf. The dhow's 12 crewmembers were taken into custody and transferred to USS Decatur, and Decatur sailors are in control of the dhow. DoD photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Sandberg, U.S. Navy. (Released) 031216-N-4374S-030

[View JPEG Photo, 963 KB] The dhow intercepted by the USS Decatur moves under its own power in the Arabian Gulf. A U.S. Navy boarding team operating from the guided missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73) discovered an estimated two tons of narcotics with a street value of around eight to ten million dollars aboard a 40-foot dhow intercepted in the Arabian Gulf. The dhow's 12 crewmembers were taken into custody and transferred to USS Decatur, and Decatur sailors are in control of the dhow. DoD photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael Sandberg, U.S. Navy. (Released) 031216-N-4374S-037