Summary
- An Iranian Navy frigate, the IRIS Dena, was reported to have sunk due to a torpedo attack by a U.S. submarine.
- The Sri Lankan Navy said it recovered 87 bodies and rescued 32 people from the waters where the vessel went down.
- The IRIS Dena is one of Iran’s newest warships and was placed under U.S. Treasury sanctions in February 2023.
Forecast Trend Report by Period
Iranian frigate explodes and sinks off Sri Lanka
Bodies of Iranian crew placed in a temporary morgue
An Iranian warship has sunk following a torpedo attack by a U.S. submarine, with the Sri Lankan Navy recovering 87 bodies from nearby waters.
According to AP and other outlets on the 5th (local time), the Sri Lankan Navy said it recovered 87 bodies from the waters where the Iranian Navy frigate IRIS Dena sank the previous day and rescued 32 people. Sri Lankan Navy spokesperson Buddika Sampath said the 32 rescued were transferred to the National Hospital in Galle, a southern coastal city, and that the bodies recovered at sea are also being moved ashore.
The bodies of Iranian crew members were transported by truck to Galle National Hospital, where Sri Lankan police and naval personnel were deployed, and placed in a temporary morgue. A senior official at Sri Lanka’s Health Ministry said that of the 32 rescued Iranian crew members, one is in critical condition and seven are receiving emergency treatment, while the rest sustained minor injuries.
The Iranian frigate, which exploded and sank about 40 km off southern Sri Lanka the previous day, was found to have been hit by a torpedo attack from a U.S. submarine.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a briefing at the Pentagon near Washington, D.C., “A U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship that believed it was safe on the high seas,” adding, “This is the first case since World War II of an enemy vessel being sunk by a torpedo.”
A video released by the U.S. Department of Defense on social media platform X showed the moment of the torpedo strike. In the footage, an underwater explosion erupts near the Iranian frigate, sending a massive column of water into the air.
The IRIS Dena is one of Iran’s newest warships, capable of conducting blue-water patrol missions, and carries surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles, torpedoes and helicopters. AP reported that the frigate was placed under U.S. Treasury sanctions in February 2023.
The IRIS Dena sent a distress signal at around 5:08 a.m. the previous day, and by the time rescue vessels arrived at the scene less than an hour later, it had already sunk completely.
Spokesperson Sampath said there was no trace of the ship when they arrived, with only an oil slick and lifeboats found, adding, “We also found crew members floating on the sea.”
Jin Young-gi, Hankyung.com reporter young71@hankyung.com
Korea Economic Daily
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