India, Oct. 31 -- A fierce national controversy has erupted in the US over the Pentagon's handling of a mental health crisis within the fleet, following disclosures that US naval leadership under Secretary of War Pete Hegseth formally disciplined and discharged a 19-year-old American sailor who survived a desperate 67-foot jump into the ocean from the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln.

US Navy Airman Nicholas McKelvey went overboard on August 3 after enduring roughly 255 consecutive days at sea amid heightened tensions in the Middle East. Following his recovery from the water after nearly 50 minutes, military command initiated administrative discharge proceedings, classifying his actions as "malingering" rather than responding to an acute ...