‘Morale is going to be at an all-time low’: Iran battle troops residing on meager rations as Postal Service stops delivering

U.S. troops deployed to the Middle East during the Iran war are facing scarce food supplies, forcing some to ration their meager meals and endure prolonged hunger, according to a new report.

Alarmed by these conditions, family members have reportedly spent significant sums sending care packages to help nourish their loved ones. But U.S. Postal Service deliveries to the region have been suspended, leaving boxes stuffed with home-cooked meals and protein bars stranded in limbo.

“[Supplies] are going to get really low,” a Navy sailor aboard the USS Tripoli texted his mother last month, according to USA Today. “Morale is going to be at an all-time low.”

More than 50,000 American service members are currently stationed in the Middle East, including thousands of Marines and sailors aboard warships patrolling the Strait of Hormuz. Multiple vessels have not made port since the war erupted in late February.

Hostilities were paused after the U.S. and Iran announced a two‑week ceasefire last Tuesday, and both sides are now engaged in peace negotiations, which have yet to yield a breakthrough. On Thursday, President Donald Trump said the conflict is “going along swimmingly” and signaled that it “should be ending pretty soon.”

Multiple recent polls indicate that a majority of Americans oppose the war, which has killed thousands in the Middle East — including 13 U.S. service members — and sent gas prices soaring.

A 63-year-old man identified as Dan F. became deeply concerned when his daughter, a Marine stationed on the USS Tripoli, sent him a photo of the meal served aboard the vessel, according to USA Today. It consisted of a small portion of meat and one tortilla. Most of the tray was empty.

A photo taken aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, an aircraft carrier, shows an equally unappetizing meal: a tiny clump of carrots, a hamburger and a thin slab of meat.

Dan’s daughter messaged him that service members aboard her ship were rationing food, had no fresh fruit or vegetables and that the coffee machine had broken down.

“We have the strongest military in the world. You shouldn’t be running out of food,” Dan, a Marine veteran, told the outlet.

Karen Erskine‑Valentine, a pastor in West Virginia, said she was disturbed to hear from a community member that her son on the USS Abraham Lincoln is living on insufficient rations.

“The food is tasteless and there’s not nearly enough and they’re hungry all the time,” she said. “That kind of breaks your heart.”

A spokesperson for the Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Independent.

General Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters earlier this month that U.S. troops supporting the war had consumed “more than six million meals, more than 950,000 gallons of coffee, and more than two million energy drinks.”

Caine added that service members have also relied on copious amounts of nicotine. “I’m not saying we have a problem,” he laughed.

In an attempt to help supplement service members’ paltry rations, family members have filled boxes with all the comforts of home — including Girl Scout cookies, home-baked fudge, Kind bars and new socks — and attempted to send them to the Middle East.

A West Virginia community mailed out 22 boxes to a sailor aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. A Texas woman said her family spent upwards of $2,000 on packages for her son.

Yet none of these shipments have been delivered, according to USA Today.

This is because mail delivery services to military ZIP codes across the region have been suspended indefinitely as of this month.

The pause, which is “in effect until further notice,” is “due to airspace closures and other logistical impacts from the ongoing conflict,” an Army spokesperson told the outlet.

“Resumption of mail service is contingent upon the reopening of airspace by civil authorities, and the area commander’s evaluation of regional transportation and distribution stability,” the spokesperson added.

Steve Kochersperger, a Postal Service historian, said these types of wartime logistical issues are not uncommon.

“Interruptions and delays in mail service have been a part of every American conflict since the Revolutionary War,” he told the outlet. “Communications and supply networks that work well during peacetime are invariably disrupted during wartime.”

Meanwhile, some concerned family members are still holding onto their packages after being informed they could not be sent.

Dawn Penrod, who lives in Maryland, said she tried mailing a package to her nephew, a service member in Bahrain, about two weeks ago. But, after a postal worker told her that they were unable to make deliveries to the address she had written down, she left and took her package with her.

“It’s sitting in my living room, waiting,” she said.

Source: independent.co.uk