A United States submarine launched a torpedo attack against an Iranian naval vessel in the Indian Ocean this week, representing the first instance of America sinking an enemy ship with such weaponry since the Second World War.
The incident occurred on March 4 when the Iranian warship IRIS Dena came under attack from American forces, according to officials from Sri Lanka, the United States, and Iran. The strike was part of coordinated U.S. and Israeli military actions targeting Iranian assets.
Search and Recovery Efforts Continue
Sri Lankan naval forces initiated emergency rescue operations after receiving an urgent distress signal from the IRIS Dena during the early morning hours of Wednesday.
When rescue teams arrived at the location, they found the warship had already gone down, with only a petroleum spill marking where the vessel once floated. Approximately 130 personnel were aboard the ship when it sank.
Recovery teams have pulled 87 bodies from the water and saved 32 survivors, who received medical attention for relatively minor wounds and were anticipated to leave the hospital on Thursday. Maritime search teams continue looking for roughly 10 missing crew members.
Naval Exercise Participation
The vessel went down in Sri Lankan territorial waters, approximately 19 nautical miles from the southern coastal city of Galle, following the submarine assault.
The Dena had been making its way back to Iran after completing participation in naval training exercises conducted in India between February 16 and February 26, staged near the southern Indian port of Visakhapatnam.
The Iranian ship joined 17 other foreign naval vessels in the MILAN exercise, which occurs every two years and included participants from Sri Lanka, Australia, Japan, and Russia. Military representatives from more than 70 nations observed the drills, including delegates from the United States and Britain.
Indian military officials characterized the training operation as among the most extensive multinational naval exercises in the Indo-Pacific region, designed to improve coordination between forces, enhance maritime surveillance capabilities, and strengthen joint response systems.
International Response
India’s naval command had previously celebrated the Dena’s participation as evidence of the “enduring cultural connections between the two countries.” Following the sinking, footage has emerged showing Iranian naval personnel parading through Visakhapatnam streets during exercise ceremonies.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi posted on social media platform X that the Dena served as “a guest of India’s Navy” and suffered the attack without advance notice while in international waters. He warned that the United States “will bitterly regret the precedent it has set.”
New Delhi has remained silent regarding the attack, although many Indians have commended neighboring Sri Lanka for its rescue response. India’s primary opposition Congress party condemned the government’s lack of response, stating the conflict had “reached our backyard” and challenging New Delhi’s position as a “net security provider” in the Indian Ocean area.
