US officially announces presence of its 5th fleet in Aden port

The U.S. Central Command has officially announced the presence of its military fleets in the ports of Aden, southern Yemen.

The U.S. Central Command confirmed in a post on Twitter earlier this week that the US Fifth Fleet will observe a moment of silence on Monday to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the attack on the USS Cole (DDG 67).

Chief of US Naval Operations said in a tweet on Twitter that he would direct all personnel in the US 5th fleet to take a moment of silence at 11.18 am on Monday, Oct. 12th, to remember those who were tragically killed in the attack on USS Cole, while refueling in Aden.

On October 12, 2000, two suicide bombers attacked the USS Cole DDG67, with their boat loaded with high explosives, while it was refueling in the port of Aden. The attack killed 17 American sailors and wounded at least 40 others.

Among the accused in the bombing of the USS Cole were Jamal Al-Badawi, who was killed in an American raid in January 2019, and the second accused of planning the operation, called Abdul-Rahim Al-Nashiri, a Saudi national, who is detained at the Guantanamo base.

YPA