White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Wednesday that anyone who suggests last month's raid in Yemen was unsuccessful "does [a] disservice" to the life of Navy SEAL William "Ryan" Owens, who was killed in the attack, which targeted al Qaeda militants. The raid was the first authorized by President Trump and an estimated 30 people, including civilians and an 8-year-old American girl, were killed.
"I think anybody who undermines the success of that raid owes an apology and a disservice to the life of Chief Owens," Spicer said. Though the raid spurred the Yemeni government to suspend the United States' anti-terrorism commando operations inside the country, Spicer insisted the raid was very valuable because of the intelligence gained. "American lives will be saved because of it," Spicer said. "Future attacks will be prevented."
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