Snorkeling at Pearl Harbor: Kash Patel’s Travels Add to Focus on Ethical Issues
The New York Times • • nation
Key Points:
- FBI director Kash Patel participated in a "V.I.P. Snorkel" trip near the underwater tomb of the U.S.S. Arizona in Hawaii, escorted by Navy SEALs using two boats.
- The U.S.S. Arizona tomb is a sacred military site holding the remains of over 900 sailors and Marines who died at Pearl Harbor, where swimming and wearing swimwear are generally prohibited out of respect.
- Exceptions for entering the water around the tomb are rare and typically limited to military and National Park Service divers conducting maintenance or interring remains.
- Navy and Defense Department officials acknowledged that V.I.P. tours near the Arizona are common but did not specify how often snorkeling occurs, and the identities of the nine others on the trip were not disclosed.
- The snorkeling visit was reportedly at the invitation of Adm. Samuel J. Paparo Jr., head of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.