Overview
- A USS Chief electronics technician was scratched by a macaque during shore leave in Phuket and flown to the ship’s forward base in Sasebo, Japan, for treatment, consistent with CDC guidance that such injuries need rapid care.
- The Navy said the sailor is stable and reported no operational impact to the USS Chief’s tasking.
- President Trump, in Truth Social posts on Thursday, said minesweeping was underway and ordered the Navy to shoot and kill any boat laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
- The strait, a chokepoint that carries about one-fifth of global oil in peacetime, has been effectively closed by Iranian mines and weaponized fast boats, disrupting commercial shipping.
- The USS Chief and USS Pioneer are conducting mine-countermeasure operations supported by helicopters, undersea drones, surveillance aircraft and destroyers to extend reach and speed the work.