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A U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship off the southern coast of Sri Lanka, U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday at a Pentagon briefing.
Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath had earlier told parliament that 180 people were on board the Iranian vessel, which he identified as the IRIS Dena.
Arun Hemachandra, Sri Lanka’s deputy foreign minister, told local television on Wednesday that at least 80 were people killed.
The Pentagon officials characterized the incident as the first time since the Second World War that a “submarine has sunk an enemy combatant ship” with a torpedo.
“I want to remind everyone that is an incredible demonstration of America’s global reach to hunt, find and kill an out-of-area deployer is something that only the United States can do at this type of scale,” said Gen. Dan Caine, who leads the U.S. Central Command.
A ship named IRINS Dena was listed as taking part in a naval drill held in the Bay of Bengal from Feb. 18 to Feb. 25, according to the exercise’s website.
Just outside Sri Lankan waters
Sri Lankan Navy spokesperson Cmmdr. Buddhika Sampath said bodies had been recovered from the sea in the area of the incident. Thirty-two people were rescued by the Sri Lankan navy and were being treated in hospital in the southern port city of Galle.
Rescue boats that reached the site did not see the ship and observed only an oil slick, Sampath said, adding that the incident took place outside Sri Lankan waters but that Colombo was still committed to providing support.
Caine of the U.S. said the torpedo sent the ship “to the bottom of the sea.”
Sri Lankan forces were focused on saving lives on the Iranian ship and will investigate the cause of the incident later, he said.
Sri Lankan forces had also not observed any other ship or aircraft in the area of the incident, he added.
“We are hopeful we can rescue more people and will continue [operations] until we are sure,” Sampath said.
