Sri Lanka Repatriates Bodies Of 84 Iranian Sailors Killed After US Submarine Sinks IRIS Dena

Sri Lanka has repatriated the remains of 84 Iranian sailors who died when an Iranian frigate was torpedoed by a United States submarine off the island’s coast earlier this month.

The sailors were killed after the Iranian warship IRIS Dena was struck on March 4 in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka.

The incident led to a humanitarian response from countries in the region. Dozens of Iranian sailors who survived the attack are currently being sheltered in Sri Lanka and India.

Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the remains were flown back to Iran on Friday on a chartered aircraft sent by Tehran.

Airport officials confirmed that an Airbus A340 departed from Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport carrying 84 sealed coffins containing the embalmed bodies.

Officials said the aircraft’s departure was delayed briefly as the coffins were being loaded. The bodies had earlier been taken to Karapitiya Teaching Hospital in Galle, about 115 kilometres south of Colombo, where autopsies were carried out after they were recovered from the sea.

A Sri Lankan magistrate later ordered that the bodies be handed over to the Iranian embassy in Colombo so they could be returned to the sailors’ families.

The casualties occurred when IRIS Dena was hit by torpedoes fired from a United States submarine on March 4 just off Sri Lanka’s coast. The frigate was sailing in international waters at the time.

A total of 84 sailors were confirmed dead after the strike.

Sri Lanka’s navy rescued 32 sailors from the warship after it was hit. The survivors were brought ashore and taken to hospital for treatment.

Officials said 22 of them have since been discharged and are now staying at a Sri Lankan Air Force base in the southern part of the island. The rest are still receiving medical care while Sri Lankan authorities coordinate with Iranian officials.

Another Iranian naval vessel, IRIS Bushehr, entered Sri Lankan waters a day after the Dena was sunk. The ship had 219 crew members on board.

Sri Lanka allowed the vessel to enter its waters and moved the crew to a navy facility north of Colombo. The Sri Lankan navy has taken control of the ship for now while engineers work to repair one of its engines that was reportedly not functioning.

Sri Lankan officials said there have been no discussions yet about sending the Bushehr crew or the rescued sailors back to Iran.

A third Iranian naval vessel, IRIS Lavan, sailed past Sri Lanka and entered safe harbour at Cochin Port in southern India. Indian authorities said the ship’s 183 crew members are currently in Indian custody.

Both Sri Lanka and India said they allowed the Iranian sailors to enter their ports for humanitarian reasons amid concerns that they could face further attacks at sea.

Officials said the Iranian ships had been taking part in a naval exercise organised by India off the coast of Visakhapatnam when the United States and Israel began military strikes on Iran.

References: aljazeera, iranintl