'Happened in International Waters': Sri Lankan Politician Senthil Thondaman on Iranian Warship IRIS Dena’s Sinking by US

New Delhi: An Iranian warship sank in the Indian Ocean off Sri Lanka’s southern coast after it was struck by a torpedo fired from a US submarine, killing dozens of sailors and triggering a large-scale rescue operation.

Speaking to Republic, Senthil Thondaman, President of the Ceylon Workers' Congress, clarified that the incident did not take place within Sri Lankan territorial waters.

“Actually, it has not happened in Sri Lankan waters, inside our territorial waters. It has happened in international waters,” he said.

Sri Lanka launched rescue on humanitarian grounds

Sri Lankan authorities said they launched an immediate search and rescue operation after receiving a distress call from the vessel.

Speaking to Republic, Thondaman said Sri Lanka acted strictly on humanitarian grounds under international maritime conventions.

He explained that the Marine Rescue Coordinating Centre in Colombo received the distress alert and quickly mobilised the navy.

“We got a message to our MRCC in Colombo about the ship being hit. Our defence authorities immediately instructed the navy to take necessary action and start the rescue operation,” he said.

U.S. submarine sinks Iranian warship off Sri Lanka

The Iranian vessel identified as the frigate IRIS Dena was heading back to Iran from an eastern Indian port when it was struck.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed the strike during a Pentagon briefing: "An American submarine sank an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters. Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo,” he said.

The sinking of the vessel is being seen as part of a broader US-Israeli military campaign targeting Iranian military capabilities beyond the Middle East region, as US President Donald Trump has said one of the key objectives of the war is to wipe out Iran’s navy.

Sri Lankan authorities said military rescuers recovered 87 bodies, while around 32 sailors were rescued and taken to hospital in the southern city of Galle.

According to officials, 50 to 60 sailors are still missing from the vessel, which reportedly had around 180 people on board. Hospital authorities in Galle confirmed that survivors were receiving treatment and were being closely monitored.

Thondaman also said diplomatic representatives were assisting with the situation. 

“The people who have been taking treatment in hospitals in the south have been closely monitored by the Iranian embassy in Sri Lanka,” he said.

Sri Lanka maintains neutral position

Further, Thondaman stressed that Sri Lanka’s response would have been the same regardless of the nationality of the vessel.

“The main thing here is even if it was an Israeli ship which was hit, Sri Lanka would have acted the same way. We are acting on humanitarian grounds,” he told Republic.

He added that Sri Lanka is committed to assisting vessels in distress within its maritime rescue zone.

“Any vessel which has been hit, whether it is a navy vessel, a fisherman vessel or a commercial vessel, we would be the first to respond,” he said.

Conflict spreading beyond Middle East

The IRIS Dena had reportedly participated in the Milan multilateral naval exercise organised by India in the Bay of Bengal.

The exercise took place from February 18 to 25 and involved several international navies.

The Indian Navy had earlier welcomed the Iranian warship to Visakhapatnam during the exercise, describing the visit as reflecting long-standing cultural links between the two countries.

The attack on the Iranian warship highlights the widening scope of the ongoing US-Israel military campaign against Iran.

The incident occurred hundreds of miles away from the Persian Gulf, where Israel and the United States have been carrying out strikes against Iranian targets while Tehran has retaliated with missile and drone attacks.

The development signals that the conflict is expanding far beyond the Middle East, with implications for maritime security across the Indian Ocean region.

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