US carrier returns home after prolonged deployment

The US aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln is returning home after spending 266 days deployed in the region amid the war with Iran.

The carrier, carrying around 5,000 US service members, has reportedly faced concerns over the mental health of personnel following months at sea. Some reports have also raised concerns about suicide attempts among service members.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) commander Admiral Brad Cooper inspected the carrier on Saturday before it began preparations to return to the United States.

Cooper’s visit came at the end of a 10-day tour that included Bahrain, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The Lincoln had remained at sea for about nine months without docking at a port. Reports have raised concerns about deteriorating living conditions and mental health problems among crew members during the prolonged deployment.

Al Jazeera recently reported that a US service member jumped overboard from the carrier, although it did not establish whether the incident was an attempted suicide.

The crew had been expected to return home in May, but the deployment was extended for operational reasons, Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao said, according to Iran’s Tasnim News Agency.

Meanwhile, tensions between Washington and Tehran remain high over the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Army Commander Major General Amir Hatami criticised President Donald Trump’s remarks about the strategic waterway, warning that Iran and its forces would prevent the United States from regaining access to the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman and Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran was continuing talks with Oman over an agreement concerning control of the Strait of Hormuz, while parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf claimed Iran had achieved a “real victory” over the United States.

SKS