2014 hostage rescue operations in Yemen

The 2014 hostage rescue operations in Yemen were missions to rescue hostages held by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in Yemen. The first attempt on 26 November 2014 rescued 8 hostages, but five hostages, including the American journalist Luke Somers, were moved by AQAP to another location prior to the raid. The second attempt by US Navy SEALS once again attempted to rescue the hostages, but Luke Somers and South African teacher Pierre Korkie were killed by AQAP during the raid in Shabwah Governorate of Yemen. Although the majority of hostages had been rescued, the operation was still seen as a failure in the West. Media particularly criticized the incapability of American forces to rescue Somers.

First raid and aftermath

On 26 November 2014, U.S. Navy SEALs and Yemeni special forces attempted a hostage rescue where eight hostages, none American, were freed, but Luke Somers and four others had been moved to another location by AQAP prior to the raid. The nationalities of the eight hostages rescued were six Yemenis, one Saudi, and one Ethiopian.

On 4 December 2014, AQAP threatened to execute Somers within three days if the US government failed to meet unspecified demands. AQAP also said that Somers would be killed if another attempt to rescue the hostages was launched.

Second raid

On 6 December 2014, 40 SEALs used V-22 Ospreys to land a distance from the compound where Somers and Korkie were kept at about 1 a.m. local time, according to a senior defense official. An AQAP fighter apparently spotted them while relieving himself outside, a counter-terrorism official with knowledge of the operation told ABC News, beginning a firefight that lasted about 10 minutes. According to CBS News, dog barking could have alerted the hostage takers of the operation.

When the American soldiers finally entered the building where Somers and Korkie were kept, they found both men alive, but gravely wounded.

The US forces pulled Somers and Korkie onto the Ospreys and medical teams began performing surgery in midair. Korkie died during the flight and Somers died after the Ospreys landed on the USS Makin Island.

The entire operation took 30 minutes. Six AQAP fighters were killed, US officials said. No American troops were killed or injured in the raid.

A video posted on a Jihadi website showed the fire fight between the Navy SEALs and AQAP fighters.

Reactions

Information "indicated that Luke's life was in imminent danger," said US President Barack Obama. "Based on this assessment, and as soon as there was reliable intelligence and an operational plan, I authorized a rescue attempt." He condemned the "barbaric murder" of Somers. "The callous disregard for Luke's life is more proof of the depths of AQAP's depravity, and further reason why the world must never cease in seeking to defeat their evil ideology," Obama said in a statement.

At the time of the raid, US special forces were unaware of the identity of the second hostage, Korkie. Korkie's release was imminent and had been negotiated by the charity Gift of the Givers. The charity's project director said that the failed rescue had "destroyed everything".

In a statement released on 8 December 2014, Somers family said they did not give the green light for the rescue operation and the ordeal could have been solved with more dialogue and less fighting.