Inside RISKY Navy SEAL de-mining missions

U.S. DESTROYED 5 OIL TANKERS OF. THE IRGC. IF YOU ARE GOING TO DO THAT YOU. ARE NOT GOING TO BE SUCCESSFUL. AND MAKE YOU PAY THE PRICE. THAT'S THE MESSAGE. NEW REPORT DETAILS HOW WE GOT. VERSION OF THE STRAIT OPEN OVER. THE LAST FOUR MONTHS U.S. NAVY. SEAL MISSIONS WERE OUT THERE. PHYSICALLY CLEARING THE STRAIT.

OF OCEAN BASED MINES. MOSTLY AT NIGHT AND IN VERY. DANGEROUS CONDITIONS. UP WANT TO SEE HOW? HERE IS A BASIC RUDIMENTARY LIST. OF HOW THEY DO IT. FIRST OFF, YOU HAVE A DRONE BOAT. THAT WOULD GO OUT THERE ON ITS. OWN AND THEY WOULD TRY TO FIND. WHERE THESE MINES WERE. THEY WOULD SEND A KING FISH DOWN. AND THE KING FISH WOULD MAP THE. OCEAN FLOOR. AND THEN THEY WOULD DROP THE. SONAR DOWN TO FIND OUT EXACTLY. WHERE IT WAS. AND THEN PHYSICALLY A NAVY SEAL. WOULD GO DOWN THERE AND HE WOULD. GO AND EITHER DETONATE THE MINE.

OR DISABLE THE MINE IN REAL. TIME. THEY DO THIS, OBVIOUSLY, VERY. CAUTIOUSLY BUT VERY. SUCCESSFULLY. WHAT ELSE CAN I TELL YOU ABOUT. IT? ESSENTIALLY WHAT THE LAND MINES. ARE LIKE AND WHAT THE RISKS ARE. I MEAN, FIRST OFF, YOU HAVE A. SHIP THAT'S IN THE AREA. AND THE SHIP IS IN THE AREA. NOW, IF THE MINE WOULD DETECT. THE METAL HALL NOT HIT THE MIND. BUT DETECT THE MINE. IF THE MINE DETECTS YOU ARE.

THERE THE BOAT WOULD BLOW UP. COUNTER THAT MAKING FIBERGLASS. AND CONSTRUCT OF WOOD AND. FIBERGLASS TO NOT IGNITE THE. MINE, ON TOP OF THESE THESE. FLOOR MINES WOULD BE OUT THERE A. SHIP WITH A DEEP HULL WOULD. ACTUALLY TRIGGER IT IT'S. EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. YOU HIT JUST ONE SHIP, THE REST. AREN'T GOING TO TAKE THE RISKS. BECAUSE THE TOO INSURERS A. WOULDN'T ALLOW IT LET'S BRING IN. DAN O'SHEA. ONE OF THE PEOPLE NOT SURPRISED. OUR NAVY SEALS WERE DOING. THIS HOW DIFFICULT ARE THESE.

OPERATIONS? >> WELL, THIS IS AN OLD-SCHOOL. DEMOLITION MISSION. DIVERS SPECIAL OPERATIONS. GUARANTEED COMBINED TASK FORCE. OF NOT ONLY NAVY SEALS BUT U.S. NAVY DIVERS HANDLE THIS MISSION. IT IS VERY COMPLEX. THE TECHNOLOGY IS CERTAINLY. ADVANCED FAR BEYOND WHAT WE WERE. USING BACK IN MY DAY YOU NEED TO. SEND A DIVER DOWN IN MANY PLACES. TO SET UP SOMETHING THAT WOULD. BE ATTACHED TO THE MINE SO IT. COULD BE DETONATED LATER AND.

REMOVE THAT THREAT TO SHIPPING. IN THAT INTERNATIONAL WATERWAY. >> Brian: DAN, TELL ME HOW THIS. WORKS. SECOND WALL. YOU SEE THESE SHIPS COMING. THROUGH. THEY ARE NOT MILITARY SHIPS. THEY ARE JUST NORMAL SHIPS. A LOT OF THEM JUST FULL OF OIL. AND THEY ARE JUST LOOKING TO. TRANSIT THE STRAIT. HOW WOULD THEY TRIGGER THAT MINE. IF THEY DON'T ACTUALLY HIT THAT. MINE? >> WELL, THERE IS -- THE MINE IS. GOING TO BE ATTRACTED TO THE. METAL. MANY TIMES THESE MINES ARE ON. THE BOTTOM OF THE SURFACE, IF A. MASSIVE SHIP GOES OVER AND.

TRIGGERS THEM AND THOSE MINE. ALSO FLOAT UP TO THE TOP AND. TAKE OUT A SHIP AND, AGAIN, IF. THEY WOULD HIT ONE OF THESE OIL. TANKERS YOU ARE TALKING MASSIVE. ECOLOGICAL DISASTER AND STOP. SHIPS. THE INSURANCE WOULDN'T PROVIDE. AND WOULD HAVE BEEN A. CATASTROPHE IN OIL PRICES AROUND. THE WORLD. INCREDIBLY TACITLY IMPORTANT. MORE IMPORTANT LAY STRATEGIC. MISSION WITH INCREDIBLE. CONSEQUENCES. AS HAS BEEN REPORTED, SHIPPING. TRAFFIC IS NOW UP SIGNIFICANTLY. IN THAT REGION BECAUSE OF THE.

DEMINING OPERATION. >> Brian: SO TWO WEEKS AGO WE. HAD 30 SHIPS GO THROUGH. LAST WEEK WE HAD 200. WE WANT ABOUT 115 A DAY. HOW CLOSE DO YOU THINK WE ARE TO. MAKING THAT HAPPEN? BECAUSE WHAT WE'RE DOING IS. TRYING TO FIND AND WE HAVE FOUND. OUR OWN CORRIDOR THROUGH THE. STRAIT. >> FROM WHAT WE UNDERSTAND WE. DON'T KNOW HOW MANY WERE CLEARED. BUT THEY OBVIOUSLY NOW HAVE A. SHIPPING LANE. THE CHALLENGE WOULD BE THAT. MINES ARE VERY EASY TO DEPLOY.

THE IRANIANS, THEIR NAVY HAS. BEEN DESTROYED BUT THEY STILL. HAVE THOSE SMALL HIGH SPEED FAST. BOATS THAT CAN LITERALLY DROP. MINES AT WILL PRETTY MUCH. SO WHEN YOU ARE SEEING IN THE. BACKGROUND THAT VESSEL GOING. ACROSS THE SCREEN, YOU COULD. PROBABLY CARRY TWO THREE MINES. PER A VESSEL AS SMALL AS THAT. AND THEY CAN, AGAIN, IT'S ONLY. GOING TO TAKE ONE MINE TO. CAUSE -- TO STOP TRAFFIC FLOW. THE MISSION WILL CONTINUE IT'S A. TESTAMENT TO THE FORTITUDE OF. THE U.S. NAVY TEAM AT LARGE FROM.

NAVY DIVERS AND NAVY SEALS IN. THAT ENTIRE PACKAGE YOU HAVE. BUT THE TECHNOLOGY HAS KEPT UP. WITH THE THREAT WE ARE IN A GOOD. SPACE TODAY. >> Brian: WE HAVE ABOUT A MINUTE. LEFT. TALK ABOUT WHAT IS NEXT, THE. SPEAKER OF THE PARLIAMENT, THEY. HAD A REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT. LEAD NEGOTIATOR WE WERE TALKING, WE ARE NOT TALKING NOW WITH THIS. ECONOMIC STRANGLEHOLD WE ARE. GOING TO LOOK TO ESCALATE AND. LOOK FOR MORE ATTACKS ON OUR. BASES AND OUR SHIPS BECAUSE THE. CURRENT SITUATION DOESN'T WORK. FOR THEM. THEY ACTUALLY SAID THAT OUT.

LOUD. WHAT SHOULD WOULD HE BE -- HOW. SHOULD WOULD HE BE RESPONDING. AND HOW MANY MORE WARNINGS DO WE. NEED -- DO WE WAITED FOR THEM TO. ESCALATE OR JUST BEAT THEM TO. THE PUNCH? >> WELL, THE NEWS HAS BEEN. TIGHTENING. I MEAN, THIS STRATEGY AND IT'S. TAKING LONGER THAN EVERYONE. WANTS. WE ARE SLOWLY SQUEEZING THE. ECONOMIC AROUND IRAN AND IT'S. WORKING. NOW THEY ARE LASHING OUT. THE ACT OF A DESPERATE NATION. BUT, YOU KNOW, THE STRATEGY LONG. TERM IS THE SAME STRATEGY THAT. ULTIMATELY COLLAPSED THE SOVIET.

EMPIRE. AND I THINK THAT'S THE LONG GAME. HERE. THAT WE ARE PUTTING A NOOSE, ALLOWING FLOW FOR THE REST OF. THE WORLD BUT IRANIAN OIL IS NOT. SHIPPING AND IT IS HAVING. CATASTROPHIC CONSEQUENCES FOR. THE ECONOMY IN TEHRAN AND THE. LEADERSHIP THERE. >> Brian: KEEP THE STATUS QUO. AND LET THEM STRIKE FIRST? >> THEY ARE GOING TO STRIKE AT. WILL WITH WHAT THEY STILL HAVE. AVAILABLE. THEY DO HAVE A SERIOUS DRONE. THREAT. BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT HAS. BEEN REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY, BUT, AT THE END OF THE DAY, THE IRGC.

IS STILL IN POWER IN IRAN AND WE. NEED TO.