Washington, Sept. 24 -- More than eight suicide attempts were reported aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group during its gruelling, months-long deployment that began last year, Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao said in a letter obtained by CBS News.
The figure includes sailors assigned to the Lincoln aircraft carrier, its air wing and the destroyers escorting the vessel, Cao said in response to questions from Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York. No suicides have occurred aboard the carrier.
A senior defence official told CBS News that two of the attempts took place while the strike group was engaged in active fighting with Iran. Cao's letter covers the full deployment, which began in November last year.
The Lincol...