US submarine sinks Iranian warship as conflict spreads beyond Middle East
Frigate goes down off Sri Lanka as Washington and Israel step up their offensive and promise to hit ‘deeper’ targets in Iran
A torpedo fired by a US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the south coast of Sri Lanka as the Trump administration followed through on its threats to destroy Tehran’s military and political leadership.
At least 87 Iranian sailors were killed in the attack on the Iris Dena. The frigate was sailing in international waters as it returned from a naval exercise organised by India in the Bay of Bengal. The torpedo strike prompted questions from former US officials about whether Washington’s aim of eliminating all of Iran’s military breached international law.
The incident came as the US-Israeli air assault on Iran continued for a fifth day, with Washington officials warning that strikes would soon hit targets “deeper” in Iran. US forces also targeted pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, while the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that it would continue missile and drone strikes on targets throughout the Middle East.
Pete Hegseth, the ex-Fox News host now leading the Pentagon as defence secretary, confirmed that the US sank the Iris Dena as it sailed close to the Sri Lankan coast. The Pentagon released black-and-white footage of a Mark 48 heavyweight torpedo striking the frigate, sending a geyser of seawater into the air.
“An American submarine sank an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters,” Hegseth said. He said the attack was carried out late on Tuesday night.
“It was sunk by a torpedo, a quiet death – the first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II,” added Hegseth. “Like in that war, back when we were still the war department, we are fighting to win.”
It is in fact one of only a few instances of a submarine sinking a ship since the second world war, and a rare example of an attack on a foreign warship not taking part in open hostilities.
According to Sri Lanka’s foreign affairs minister, Vijitha Herath, coastguards received a distress call from the Iris Dena at 5.08am on Wednesday. Crew members described the incident as an explosion.
“By 6am we dispatched a naval vessel and by 7am the second naval vessel,” Herath said. He said Sri Lanka had an obligation to respond to the call for help because it was a signatory to the international convention on maritime search and rescue.
Sri Lankan officials said they had saved 32 people from the ship, which was believed to be carrying 180 crew. Emergency responders retrieved 87 bodies from the water. Navy spokesperson Buddhika Sampath said rescue boats arrived at the site of the attack to find that the Iranian frigate had already sunk, leaving just an oil slick.
The frigate was outside Sri Lanka’s territorial waters but still within its economic zone, 44 nautical miles (81km) off Galle.
There were signs on Wednesday that the war was continuing to expand throughout the region. Turkey said that Nato air defences had intercepted an Iranian missile headed toward its airspace, presumably to strike Nato forces at the Incirlik airbase. Turkish officials condemned the attack, while calling on all sides for de-escalation.
The conflict paralysed shipping through the strait of Hormuz for a fifth day, choking off vital Middle East oil and gas flows, while the UN said at least 100,000 people had fled Tehran in the first two days of the war.
The Israeli military said it had hit buildings belonging to the Basij, the volunteer police arm of the IRGC, and buildings belonging to internal security forces. Israeli forces also advanced into towns and villages in south Lebanon as hostilities with the Iran-backed Hezbollah escalated.
Hegseth had previously boasted that the US operation in Iran was not following any “stupid rules of engagement”.
Wes Bryant, a former US air force special operations targeting expert and former chief of civilian harm assessments at the Pentagon, said the attack on the Iris Dena was illegal.
The ship was transiting home after participating in training exercises hosted by the Indian navy at the time of the strike. India had convened naval assets from 74 countries for a March exercise.
“Was that warship actively posing a threat or participating in hostilities?” asked Bryant. “You cannot say that this warship was an imminent threat to anyone. By targeting it, is the Trump administration saying that the imminent threat is all of Iran’s government and military? If so, that’s an incredibly dangerous example of military overreach.”
The Iris Dena was the newest frigate in the Iranian navy and equipped with surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles, cannon, machine guns and torpedo launchers.
Sampath said rescue efforts were continuing and the main focus of the operation was to “help survivors”.
A senior Sri Lankan official told the Guardian the Iranian embassy in Colombo had indicated through back channels that they believed their ship had been targeted by a US strike.
The official said the Iranians claimed that the ship’s defence and counterattack capabilities were disabled by electromagnetic means.
Another Sri Lankan defence source said it appeared that the vessel had been hit by two torpedoes.
The main US naval base in the Indian Ocean is Diego Garcia, located in the Chagos archipelago, more than 1,000 miles (1,600km) from Sri Lanka.
Piers Morgan humiliates Ana Kasparin…
ReplyDeletehttps://youtu.be/ptACBDFbh4g
My analysis..
ReplyDeleteA key power of naval ships is they Move.
They can move 24 hrs x 25 knots is 600 nautical miles or 1,120 km per day.
So..once hostilities start, there is no such thing as a "harmless" opposition armed naval asset
The Iris Dena was armed with 4 Qader anti-ship missiles - 300 km (!) range. Yup it was a dangerous ship once within missile range.
The ocean is a vast place, and even today, it is no easy matter to precisely locate and identify a ship. No militaty , not even the Yanks, can continously watch such a target.
Once hostilities started, taking out the ship before it got within missile range of Diego Garcia ( about 24 - 36 hours away from Iris Dena missile range) or the main American fleet was a normal military decision.
yr mfering analysis of a ceremonial frigate on way home from A3's invited show.
DeleteIris Dena carried NO designed armories of any kind in this visiting mission to India.
🚨 RARE: Arab nations at the UN—Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman—condemn Iran’s “cowardly” missile and drone attacks. Tehran’s gambit to terrorize its neighbors has backfired. Whatever the mullahs' strategy, the result is diplomatic self-isolation.
ReplyDeletehttps://x.com/UNWatch/status/2030045320302793214?s=20
SAUDI ARABIA: My country is subjected to aggressions and attacks by Iran by ballistic missiles and drones that have targeted civilians and civilian infrastructure since the 28th February. This cowardly attack is a blatant violation of our sovereignty international law and UN Charter.
ReplyDeleteThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia strongly condemns and rejects cowardly Iranian attacks on Riyadh and southern province of Saudi Arabia which cannot be justified in any terms. We also strongly condemn the Iranian attacks on the United Arab Emirates Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Jordan.
BAHRAIN FOR GCC: We firmly condemn the Iranian aggressions against the territories of our countries which is a threat to regional stability and peace.
KUWAIT: We denounce the Iranian missile attack on our territory.
QATAR: We condemn Iranian military attacks that we were targeted by two days ago, which consists of a violation of the sovereignty of Qatar, of the territorial integrity of our country. It's an act of unjustifiable aggression which threatens populations.
https://x.com/UNWatch/status/2030046701827019214?s=20
Prior warnings given to these nations forjolding yankee military bases.
DeleteU eat what u sowed, mfer
🚨 SHABANA MAHMOOD CALLED OUT TO HER FACE: Why No Student Visa Ban on Pakistan? 🇬🇧 🇵🇰
ReplyDeleteCamila Tominey Grills Home Secretary Over Selective Crackdown! 🔥
Camila Tominey directly challenges Shabana Mahmood on why Pakistan was left off the UK's new student visa suspension list.
The government just halted study visas for Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan, citing a massive 470% surge in asylum claims from those nationalities arriving on student routes between 2021-2025. Yet these four countries only accounted for a tiny fraction of total student visas issued.
Pakistan, however, issued over 30,000 student visas in 2025 alone and accounts for the largest share of people entering legally then claiming asylum – around a quarter of such cases, with Pakistanis topping the list for visa-based asylum applications in recent stats.
Pakistan should clearly be on that list.
The grooming gang scandals alone – where mostly Pakistani men systematically exploited and abused hundreds of thousands of vulnerable British white girls over decades – are damning reason enough to slam the door shut.
Mahmood's own Pakistani heritage and Labour's reluctance to upset the Muslim voting bloc reek of blatant conflict of interest and selective enforcement.
https://x.com/triffic_stuff_/status/2029920671367561319?s=20
wakakaka… is paki's student visa to yankeeland more than that of A3's?
DeleteThis mfering act of torpedoed an Iranian frigate is a betrayal of the highest order by the Indian govt.
ReplyDeleteIRIS Dena was transiting home after participating in training exercises hosted by the Indian navy at the time of the strike. India had convened naval assets from 74 countries for a March exercise.
Since it's an peaceful exercise, IRIS Dena carried NO live arsenals for war.
The Indian didn't provide ANY protection for its guest. Instead, the mfering A3 disclosed the location of IRIS Dena on its way back to Iran.
The SriLakan govt took 11hrs to consider a request for port docking while IRIS Dena waited at international water, 44 nautical miles (81km) off Galle.
The deaths of those 87 Iranian sailors r at the hands of the chicken little Yankee sub. They r also the victims of Indian betrayal & SriLankan wishy-washy fart of geopolitical play!
There is NO any military honor for that attacking yankee sub crews.
The other Iranian warship in the area, IRIS Busher has sought refuge with Sri Lanka , declaring it was facing mechanical difficulties.
ReplyDeleteGood for Sri Lanka to act with neutrality within international law.
Sri Lanka had two choices, allow the ship to enter its territorial waters, make repairs and leave within 72 hours. Or allow the Iranian ship to stay indefinitely , but Iran must relinquish control of their warship.
Sri Lanka has agreed to the 2nd option.
Still needing IMF and other international financial assistance, Sri Lanka can't afford to Eff the Wankees.
The last time such a high stakes clash over issues of the role of neutral states in a naval conflict was WW2 , 1939 when the German pocket battleship Graf Spee sought refuge in neutral Uruguay waters after a battle with pursuing British warships.
mfer, IRIS Dena wasn't on WAR MISSION likening Graf Spee!
DeleteKeep that in yr mfering mind