A new U.S. aircraft carrier strike group has arrived in the Middle East, the military announced Thursday, after conditions aboard a long-deployed carrier provoked fresh criticism of President Donald Trump's war against Iran.
"The George Washington Carrier Strike Group is operating in Middle East during a scheduled deployment after arriving in the CENTCOM theater yesterday," Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East, said in a post on the social media platform X.
The update comes just days after media reports on grim conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier had created an unwelcome distraction for Trump in his attempt to sell the already unpopular war.
The Lincoln's deployment has included a record-setting uninterrupted time at sea of more than 240 days.
Several outlets, including specialist military publications, quoted relatives of crew members as saying that living conditions had deteriorated on the carrier, with food shortages and broken plumbing.
