Ex-Royal Navy chief says ‘horrible but acceptable’ US torpedoing of Iranian warship makes conflict ‘a global war’ – and describes what strike would have been like for the sailors on board

The US-Iran conflict turned into a ‘global war’ after an American submarine sank a regime warship in international waters on Wednesday night.

A torpedo launched from a US submarine hit the Iris Dena off the coast of Sri Lanka, about 2,000 miles from Iran.

Footage showed a massive explosion below the stern, followed by haunting images captured at sunset on Tuesday.

The Sri Lankan navy responded to the ship’s distress signal and a ship arrived to see oil pellets and life rafts in the water.

Rescue teams pulled 32 survivors from the Indian Ocean, while 87 bodies were pulled from the water.

Another 70 sailors missing on Wednesday night are estimated to have drowned.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, former Royal Navy chief Lord West said that the sinking of the ship turned a regional conflict into a ‘global war’.

He said: ‘This makes it quite tricky as some will say it is outside the Area of ​​Operations.

Images show a large explosion under the stern (pictured)

This was followed by haunting images of the ship sinking on Tuesday (pictured)

‘Although it is a terrible event, it is acceptable for the USA to be at war with Iran. Nobody is declaring war these days, but that’s where we are.

‘This is a global war now. There would be nothing wrong with Iran attacking US targets anywhere.

‘The toys were thrown out of the bed. ‘We are waging a war.’

Lord West added: ‘I feel sorry for the sailors. They would receive no warning. You can see the explosion. Torpedoes are designed to be blown up outside.’

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth confirmed what he called a ‘silent death’ in a bombastic speech at the Pentagon.

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In 1982, Britain torpedoed the Argentinian ship Belgrano during the Falklands conflict.

The joint US-Israeli operation to attack Iran had already provided ‘twice the air power of the shock and awe against Iraq in 2003’ and ‘seven times the intensity of Israel’s previous operations against Iran during the 12-day war’.

He added that the Iranian regime “is blushing and they know it, or at least they will soon realize it.”

US officials said Iran has now lost 20 ships that US forces have either ‘grounded or sunk at the bottom of the ocean’.

The country’s firing of ballistic missiles and suicide drones has also ceased, according to the Pentagon.

US figures show that Iran’s ballistic missile firing has decreased by 86 percent and the firing of unmanned aerial vehicles by 73 percent.

But officials have warned that Iran could accumulate missiles to bid for time, hoping to prolong the conflict and increase pressure on Donald Trump to find an exit strategy.

On Wednesday night, the regime announced that the death toll in the attacks had reached 1,045.

This includes more than 150 people, mostly children, who are thought to have died when a stray US missile hit an Iranian primary school.

Pentagon officials are investigating the incident on Saturday.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, former Royal Navy chief Lord West said the sinking of the ship (pictured, file photo) had turned a regional conflict into a ‘global war’.

Rescue teams pulled 32 survivors from the Indian Ocean, while 87 bodies were pulled from the water. Picture: An injured Iranian soldier is taken to hospital in Galle, Sri Lanka, following the attack

Another 70 sailors missing on Wednesday night are estimated to have drowned. Picture: An injured person is transported in a wheelchair to the hospital in Galle, Sri Lanka, to receive treatment following the attack.

Iran continued to attack its neighbors on Wednesday, including Iraq, Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Israel. Image: Sparks from the interception of a missile in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Wednesday

Clashes between Hezbollah and Israeli soldiers continued in southern Lebanon. Picture: Smoke rises after an Israeli attack on the southern suburbs of Beirut on Wednesday, following tensions between Hezbollah and Israel

The British Foreign Office announced that some of its staff had withdrawn from Bahrain due to concerns that there could be more attacks. Picture: Damage caused by an Iranian drone strike on a building next to the US naval base in Juffair, Bahrain, on Wednesday

The Iranian regime announced on Wednesday that it has indefinitely postponed the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in order to prevent further assassinations of their leader.

Thousands of people were expected to attend the event in Tehran.

Iran continued to attack its neighbors on Wednesday, causing a complete power outage in Iraq and firing drones at Baghdad airport.

On Wednesday night, the United States advised all its citizens to leave Iraq.

Tehran also fired a ballistic missile at NATO member Türkiye.

After passing through Syrian and Iraqi airspace, he was stopped by defense systems when he was about to enter Türkiye.

Iran’s target may be the joint US-Turkish base in Incirlik, which America used in previous Gulf Wars.

It has been reported that Iran’s missiles are also in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Israel.

Four commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz in the last 24 hours were also targeted.

Clashes between Hezbollah and Israeli soldiers continued in southern Lebanon.

The British Foreign Office announced that some of its staff had withdrawn from Bahrain due to concerns that there could be more attacks.

On Wednesday, concerns that the conflict could prolong led the Institute for Fiscal Studies to warn of slowing economic growth, falling incomes and rising inflation in Britain.

Former US general David Petraeus, who commanded US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, warned that airstrikes would not lead to regime change.

He said: ‘This regime is very big, the police are very strong, the Republican Guard is hundreds of thousands, maybe over a million.

‘We don’t see any cracks yet. No one left the regime who could take others with them.

‘So what I’m not sure what you can do is create regime change.’

Iranian president Massoud Pezeshkian said on social media Wednesday night that the country ‘has no option to defend ourselves’ in response to US and Israeli attacks on neighboring Gulf states

While the Republican Guard searches for US and Israeli spies, Iranians are warned to stay home or they may be shot.

Food prices have quadrupled since the conflict began on Saturday, and the regime has set up additional checkpoints to monitor its citizens.