Two Navy SEALs who went missing earlier this month confirmed dead

Navy SEAL trident rests atop a folded American flag.

The two US Navy SEALs who went missing in the Red Sea off the coast of Somalia earlier this month were determined dead on Sunday by the US Central Command after 10 days of searching.

“We regret to announce that after a 10-day exhaustive search, our two missing US Navy SEALs have not been located, and their status has been changed to deceased,” Central Command said in a statement Sunday. “Out of respect for the families, no further information will be released at this time.”

The search for the two SEALs included teams from the US, Spain, and Japan, which CENTCOM said searched more than 21,000 square miles trying to locate the missing SEALs.

The statement shared more information on the mission the SEALs were carrying out when they went overboard.

According to CENTCOM, the SEALs were boarding a vessel to search for illicit Iranian weapons when one of them fell into the water due to eight-foot swells. Following SEAL protocol, the second jumped in after them.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin shared a statement on the SEALs on Sunday, sharing his condolences to the sailors’ families.

“We mourn the loss of our two brave Navy SEALs, and our hearts are with their families,” Austin said. “The entire Department is united in sorrow today. We are grateful to all who worked tirelessly to try to find and rescue them.”