The United States has threatened to maintain an “indefinite” naval blockade on Iranian ports and impose new measures to isolate Iran economically as ceasefire talks between the two countries remain in deadlock. However, lawmakers in the US raised the alarm this week following reports of dire conditions on board the flagship USS Abraham Lincoln, including accounts of sailors trying to jump overboard. Furthermore, despite President Donald Trump’s claims that the US has “full control” of the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway that Iran closed in early March shortly after the start of the war, only a handful of ships have been able to pass through this week.
So how long can the US really keep a naval blockade going, and can Iran just wait it out? On Thursday, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that the US military can maintain a naval presence in the region “indefinitely” to enforce its blockade of Iranian ports. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also said the US will apply new economic measures to pressure Iran.
Questions have been raised about the conditions on board the USS Abraham Lincoln, the US’s flagship aircraft carrier that is conducting maritime security and blockade operations around the Strait of Hormuz. Reports by two US publications that cover military affairs, the Navy Times and Stars and Stripes, cited family members of military personnel on board the vessel who said they were suffering from declining mental health and morale, and cases of suicidal ideation. The Navy Times spoke on the record with one sailor’s wife, identified as Annabelle Loma, who said he had attempted to jump overboard amid what she described as “severe burnout”.
The reports have prompted urgent questions from US lawmakers. In a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal wrote that the aircraft carrier, which departed San Diego, California, in November last year with more than 5,000 US sailors and Marines on board, has now been “continuously at sea for a record length of nearly seven months”. That surpasses any previous deployment of a US aircraft carrier without a port stop.
Blumenthal raised the alarm over reports of deteriorating mental health on board, as well as shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, an increase in safety incidents, and even disruptions to mail services, through which those on board receive care packages. US senators are demanding answers from Hegseth. US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for Hegseth to be removed from his position over his handling of the aircraft carrier.
In a post on X, Schumer wrote, “When Pete Hegseth was nominated, everyone knew he was completely incompetent. Now our brave sailors are paying the price in a horrific and unfathomable way.” “Pete Hegseth must be fired immediately,” he added. California lawmakers led by Representative Mike Levin also demanded answers from Hegseth and Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao about the situation on board the aircraft carrier.
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