Iranian warship sunk by the US was sailing home after taking part in an exhibition hosted by India
GALLE, Sri Lanka (AP) — An Iranian warship sunk by US submarine near Sri Lanka On his way back home, he participated in naval exercises hosted by India before heading out into international waters in the Indian Ocean, New Delhi said.
The sinking revealed the scope of the incident US-Israel’s war with Iran and its expansion in the Middle East and beyond. This has also sparked a debate on maritime security in India. Indian Ocean — An area where New Delhi maintains a significant naval presence.
On Wednesday, the Sri Lankan navy recovered 87 bodies and rescued 32 Iranian sailors from the IRIS Dena, which sank in international waters off the island nation’s coast; this is II. It is a rare example of a submarine torpedoing a ship since World War II.
The Sri Lankan navy said it responded to a distress signal from IRIS Dena, but when it reached the area there was no sign of the ship, just oil shards and sailors floating in the water. The rescued sailors were taken to a hospital in the town of Galle on Sri Lanka’s southern coast.
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth He said the sinking showed the situation US-Israeli military operation against Iran extends beyond its borders and IRIS has described Dena as a “prize-winning ship”. US President Donald Trump said that one of the main goals of the war was to destroy the Iranian navy.
The moment of the torpedo attack was shown in a video published by the US Department of Defense on the X channel. The Iranian ship appears to have been hit by an underwater explosion that caused it to break apart as a large cloud of water rose into the air.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the US Navy of committing an “atrocity at sea” by sinking the frigate and said on social media on Thursday that the US would “bitterly regret” the attack.
Araghchi said IRIS Dena was carrying “almost 130” crew members.
Indian navy and defense ministry said the Iranian warship participated in the International Fleet Review and multilateral MILAN 2026 naval exercise organized by the Indian navy at Visakhapatnam port from February 15 to February 25. The ministry said that 74 countries participated in the events.
The Iranian warship was seen sailing at sea during the Indian navy’s exercises in X on February 17. Another photo shows several members of the crew posing on deck with the Iranian flag in the background.
Araghchi emphasized that the frigate was a “guest” of the Indian navy. The Indian government has yet to comment publicly on the incident.
Another Iranian ship entered Sri Lankan territorial waters
In Sri Lanka, the country’s media minister and government spokeswoman, Nalinda Jayatissa, told parliament on Thursday that another Iranian ship had reached its waters.
Jayatissa did not provide further details about the ship or the number of people on board. He said the government was trying to “minimise loss of life and maintain regional peace” but did not provide details.
Questions about sinking in India
India has long viewed the Indian Ocean as central to its security; The navy conducts regular patrols and multinational exercises to protect important sea lanes used for global trade and energy shipments. It also traditionally focuses on diplomacy and negotiations, while trying to maintain a careful diplomatic balance in the tensions between the United States and Iran.
But Indian opposition leaders on Thursday questioned the government’s lack of response to the incident and said the sinking of the warship so close to India’s seashore required an official explanation.
The opposition Indian National Congress party criticized what it called the Prime Minister’s “silence” Narendra Modi ‘s government.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi wrote in a post on channel X: “The conflict reached our backyard and an Iranian warship sank in the Indian Ocean. But the Prime Minister said nothing.”
Kanwal Sibal, a former diplomat who served as India’s foreign minister from 2002 to 2003, wrote in
“The US ignored India’s sensitivities,” Sibal said. “The ship was in these waters due to India’s invitation.”
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Saaliq reported from New Delhi. Associated Press journalist Bharatha Mallawarachi in Colombo, Sri Lanka, contributed to this report.
