{"id":459,"date":"2026-03-06T20:15:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T20:15:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/socializenews.com\/?p=459"},"modified":"2026-03-06T20:15:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T20:15:08","slug":"sri-lanka-takes-custody-of-an-iranian-vessel-off-its-coast-after-us-sank-an-iranian-warship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/socializenews.com\/?p=459","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lanka takes custody of an Iranian vessel off its coast after US sank an Iranian warship"},"content":{"rendered":"

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) \u2014 Sri Lanka transferred more than 200 sailors from an Iranian naval vessel to shore Friday after it sought assistance while anchored outside the country\u2019s waters, as tensions mounted in the Indian Ocean following\u00a0the sinking<\/span>\u00a0of an Iranian warship by a U.S. submarine.<\/p>\n

Sri Lankan navy spokesperson Cmdr. Buddhika Sampath said 204 sailors of the IRIS Bushehr were brought to Welisara Naval Base near the capital, Colombo. They underwent border control procedures and medical tests, but none were found to have health issues.<\/p>\n

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About 15 others have been left aboard the ship with Sri Lankan naval personnel for assistance because they had reported a fault with the ship. The Iranian sailors are interpreting operational instructions, manuals and logs for their Sri Lankan counterparts. He said the ship will be taken to the port of Trincomalee in eastern Sri Lanka, and remain in Sri Lankan custody until further notice.<\/p>\n

Iranian ship was taking part in naval exercises<\/h2>\n

The Sri Lankan government took custody of the Bushehr after the U.S. sank an Iranian warship, the IRIS Dena, off Sri Lanka\u2019s coast Wednesday. The strike marked one of the rare instances since World War II in which a submarine sank a surface warship, and highlighted the expanding scope of the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran.<\/p>\n

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The Dena had participated in\u00a0naval exercises hosted by India<\/span>\u00a0before heading into international waters on its way home. At least 74 countries had joined the events, according to India\u2019s Defense Ministry, including the U.S. Navy, which conducted reconnaissance aircraft and maritime patrol drills.<\/p>\n

The Indian navy received a distress signal from the Dena but by the time it launched a search and rescue operation, the Sri Lankan navy had already begun its own rescue efforts, the ministry said.<\/p>\n

The Sri Lankan navy rescued 32 sailors and recovered 87 bodies.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Dena had been carrying \u201calmost 130\u201d crew. The normal crew size for a warship of that class is 140. Araghchi called the sinking an \u201catrocity at sea\u201d and said the US would \u201cbitterly regret\u201d the attack.<\/p>\n

Sri Lanka says it acted under international law<\/h2>\n

Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said late Thursday that authorities decided to take control of the IRIS Bushehr after discussions with Iranian officials and the ship\u2019s captain, after one of its engines failed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to understand that this is not an ordinary situation. It\u2019s a request by a ship belonging to one party to enter into our port. We have to consider that according to the international treaties and conventions,\u201d he told journalists Thursday night.<\/p>\n

Separately on Friday, he wrote on X: \u201cNo civilian should die in wars. Our approach is that every single life is as precious as our own.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The IRIS Bushehr had been described in previous Iranian media reports as a navy logistics ship equipped with a helicopter pad.<\/p>\n

Dissanayake said Sri Lanka was guided by neutrality while seeking to uphold humanitarian principles.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have followed a very clear stance. We will not be biased to any state nor we will be submissive to any state,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

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Sri Lanka\u2019s neutrality is tested<\/h2>\n

The broadening Middle East conflict is putting strategically located Sri Lanka in a delicate position as it tries to balance humanitarian obligations, international maritime law and its longstanding policy of non-alignment.<\/p>\n

H.M.G.S. Palihakkara, Sri Lanka\u2019s retired former foreign secretary who also served as its permanent representative to the United Nations, said the country had acted responsibly and impartially.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has been a distress call from the ship. So naturally Sri Lanka, as a party to the Law of Sea and The Hague Convention, had no option but to do what it did by mounting a humanitarian operation to provide assistance to save lives and provide medical care to the affected,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Palihakkara said parties to the conflict would understand that Sri Lanka was not taking sides.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou could not have ignored the distress call. Even the attacking powers cannot leave shipwrecked sailors dying. That is the law,\u201d Palihakkara said.<\/p>\n

Katsuya Yamamoto, director of the Strategy and Deterrence Program at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation in Tokyo, said Sri Lanka, which is not at war with either the U.S. or Iran, is considered a neutral state. As such, the Bushehr can enter a Sri Lankan port if granted permission by the government, he said.<\/p>\n

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Yamamoto said that once the vessel is docked, it falls under Iranian jurisdiction, leaving Sri Lankan authorities without legal grounds to inspect it unless Colombo decides to side with the U.S.<\/p>\n

The U.N. resident coordinator in Sri Lanka, Marc-Andr\u00e9 Franche, welcomed Sri Lanka\u2019s intervention, saying on X that it reflected its commitment to \u201cmultilateralism, maintaining neutrality, and underscoring its dedication to peace.\u201d<\/p>\n

Australians aboard submarine<\/h2>\n

Australia\u2019s government confirmed on Friday that three Australians were aboard the submarine that sank the IRIS Dena. The Australians were there as part of the trilateral U.S., Australian and British training program under the AUKUS security pact.<\/p>\n

The Australian government has maintained it was not warned that the U.S and Israel planned to attack Iran. Australia has not commented on the legality of the attack, but supports the objective of preventing Iran from gaining nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n

Neil James, executive director of the Australian Defense Association policy think tank, said it is \u201creasonably rare\u201d for Australians embedded with another nation\u2019s military to go to war against a country such as Iran that Australia wasn\u2019t at war with.<\/p>\n

He said an Australian would not have fired the torpedo that sank the Iranian ship<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Australians wouldn\u2019t have a job where they had to push the button on the torpedo because the captain of the boat gives the order and someone else, perhaps the weapons officer, presses the button but they\u2019re not going to be Australian,\u201d James said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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