Sailors involved in Donald Trump’s conflict with Iran are facing tough conditions, including poor showers and limited food, as they have been on a mission for nine months with no end in sight.The USS Abraham Lincoln left San Diego in November for a seven-month deployment, but the conflict started in February when Trump launched an air campaign against Iran.The ship has been in the fight since then, and over 5,000 sailors and Marines are still on board without a return date.Trump claimed the war would last only a few weeks, but it has gone on for five months.
Bonnie York, whose stepson is on the Lincoln, said a doctor or therapist on the ship warned that the crew needs to get back to port before they start “losing their minds.” She voted for Trump, partly because he promised not to start new wars, but she now feels the country isn’t safer.
She said the crew has been “stranded” out there.
Relatives of the sailors have shared fears that the exhaustion on board could lead to accidents.
Dozens spoke to the media about the conditions, but most did not want to be named, worried about retaliation.Brett Snow, a Navy veteran with a son on the ship, said the situation is “ripe for accidents.” Even during peacetime, he said, a carrier is one of the most dangerous places to work.
The crew has only been off the ship for two days in the past eight months.
There was a short stop in Guam in December, and then no port until the Lincoln reached Oman on July 7, marking 208 straight days at sea.No U.S.carrier has spent that long without a break in modern times.
Families have described problems including broken toilets, closed laundry rooms, and long periods without hot water.
Nicole Conrad, who also voted for Trump, hasn’t seen her son’s face in months.He has told her about locked showers, a closed laundry, and a meal of just two tortillas and a half-cup of rice.She now wants Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to visit the ship.She said he put their family “in a war we shouldn’t be in.”
The relatives went public two days after Trump gave Hegseth’s wife, Jennifer, a new position focused on military family welfare.
Hegseth previously dismissed complaints about the conditions at sea.Pictures of nearly empty meal trays from the Lincoln and USS Tripoli spread online, and the Daily Beast reported on parents being upset that their children were going hungry.Hegseth called the coverage “fake news.”
Rep.
Sara Jacobs, a San Diego Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, said the crew’s fatigue and mental health are a major concern.She warned that history shows such stress can lead to serious consequences, including a higher risk of suicide.She said Trump needs to end the Iran war and bring the service members home.
In other news, 51 military spouses have been arrested by immigration authorities since Trump returned to office, with at least six deported and eight still in custody.
The real number is likely higher since no official count is kept.These arrests have delayed deployments, forced some troops to take leave, and left others without a family member at home to care for their children.Experts say the situation could harm military readiness during the war.
One official helping military spouses get released is Markwayne Mullin, whose department is responsible for the arrests, and whose wife is on Trump’s new military welfare commission.
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