Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei has mocked the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln on social media following reports of sailor exhaustion.
Writing on social network X, Baghaei said the United States originally deployed the aircraft carrier to the region as a demonstration of strength. He stated that after several months of war and more than 200 days without a single port visit, the vessel was heading to Thailand for crew rest, contrasting its initial power projection mission with a vacation project and referencing the movie line about being tired.
Baghaei also attached a photograph of the film character who delivered the line in the movie.
US Navy deployment in the Middle East
Media outlets previously reported that the US Navy aircraft carrier would dock in Thailand following an extended deployment in the Middle East. The USS Abraham Lincoln is a Nimitz class nuclear powered aircraft carrier operated by the United States Navy, commissioned in 1989 and named after the 16th US president.
A scandal surrounding the aircraft carrier erupted in mid August over deteriorating conditions aboard the vessel. Desperate sailors repeatedly attempted to jump overboard, while military personnel complained of severe exhaustion and poor service conditions.
Thailand, located in Southeast Asia, frequently serves as a stopover for foreign military vessels conducting scheduled port visits and crew liberty calls.
The Green Mile movie reference
The Green Mile is a 1999 American fantasy drama film adapted from Stephen King's 1996 novel and directed by Frank Darabont. In the movie, the character John Coffey, played by actor Michael Clarke Duncan, utters the famous line expressing physical and emotional weariness while on death row.
Esmail Baghaei serves as the official spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran, regularly issuing public statements on international military developments and diplomatic relations.
