At least 87 people were killed when a US submarine struck and sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean off Sri Lanka, officials confirmed.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said an American submarine had carried out the strike on the Iranian vessel near Sri Lanka’s southern coast, marking a major escalation in naval operations in the region.
180 ON BOARD THE IRIS DENA
Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath told parliament that around 180 people were on board the Moudge-class frigate IRIS Dena when it went down about 40 nautical miles off the island. The vessel had issued a distress call before sinking.
“A US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the southern coast of Sri Lanka,” Hegseth said, adding that the vessel was a military target. The sinking follows separate US operations, with the Department of War confirming that a Soleimani-class corvette had also been sunk in the Strait of Hormuz near Iranian shores.
VESSEL RETURNING FROM INDIA EXERCISE
The ship, named IRINS Dena, had recently taken part in the International Fleet Review 2026 in India before beginning its return voyage. It was listed as taking part in a naval drill held in the Bay of Bengal from February 18 to February 25, according to the exercise website. Two weeks before the sinking, the Eastern Naval Command had welcomed the Iranian vessel during its port call at Visakhapatnam.
In a post on X, the command wrote: “Welcome! | ! Indian Navy welcomes IRIS Dena, of the Iranian Navy, on her arrival at #Visakhapatnam to participate in #IFR2026_India and #MILAN2026, reflecting long-standing cultural links between the two nations.”
RESCUE OPERATIONS CONTINUE
Sri Lankan authorities said 32 people had been rescued and several bodies recovered from the sea. The injured were being treated at a state-run hospital in the southern port city of Galle.
“We are hopeful we can rescue more people and will continue operations until we are sure,” Sri Lankan navy spokesman Commander Buddhika Sampath said.
He added, “Cannot give details on the number of dead as of now.”
Sampath said rescue boats that reached the site did not see the ship and observed only an oil slick. The navy received a distress call from the Iranian vessel and informed the Sri Lanka Air Force, with both launching a coordinated search and rescue operation.
“The ship is a military vessel. Incident took place beyond Sri Lankan waters but Sri Lanka is committed to providing support,” he said.Sri Lankan forces had not observed any other ship or aircraft in the area at the time of the incident.
“Did not observe any other ship in the area,” the spokesman said.
A Sri Lanka Air Force spokesman said, “No aircraft observed in that area during time of distress call.”
CONFLICTING ACCOUNTS BEFORE US CONFIRMATION
Before Hegseth’s remarks, sources in Sri Lanka’s navy and defence ministry had said the vessel may have been attacked by a submarine and that at least 101 people were missing. They had added that it was unclear who may have targeted the ship.
A Sri Lankan navy spokesman had earlier rejected reports about the cause of the sinking, saying, “Reject reports of any reported causes for the ship sinking,” and stressing that the immediate focus was on saving lives.
“Focusing on saving lives on the ship, afterwards we can conduct investigations into other details,” he said.
The confirmation from the US defence chief that an American submarine carried out the strike marks a sharp escalation in the episode, which had earlier raised questions over whether the sinking was the result of an attack, a technical failure or another incident at sea.