New Delhi: A second Iranian vessel has sought Sri Lanka’s help, a day after the US announced that an American submarine had struck and sunk frigate IRIS Dena off the island nation’s coast, in an attack widely criticised as unwarranted given that the warship posed no threat.
Sri Lanka spokesperson and Minister Dr Nalinda Jayatissa told Parliament Thursday that Colombo was aware of another Iranian ship in the country’s exclusive economic zone outside its maritime boundary.
“The government is working to provide maximum assistance to safeguard those on board,” Jayatissa said.
He did not specify if it was an Iranian naval vessel, but local media reported that it is IRIS Bushehr, a replenishment ship, with around 100 crew members on board.
The Sri Lankan Guardian quoted sources to say that the country has granted IRIS Bushehr access to the country’s waters on humanitarian grounds, but denied port docking due to foreign pressure and national security concerns.
Commissioned in 1974, IRIS Bushehr is a logistical support vessel that serves Iran’s southern fleet and patrols near the Gulf of Aden, providing extended maritime operational capacity.
The Sri Lankan Guardian reported that Colombo responded to its request with “unconditional humanitarian assistance”.
The development comes a day after IRIS Dena–which had sailed to Visakhapatnam to participate in the Indian Navy’s multilateral exercise MILAN last month–was struck by a torpedo launched by an American submarine off Sri Lanka’s coast.
The frigate was on its way back to Iran after the exercise concluded when it was sunk.At least 87 Iranian soldiers died, and 32 others were rescued by the Sri Lankan navy, which received distress signals early Wednesday. Twenty others on board, believed dead, are yet to be traced.
In the hours after the strike, US’s Department of War confirmed the attack and posted a video of the moment that the frigate was hit. The video showed the warship being hit by a huge explosion, which blew apart the rear of the vessel, causing it to begin sinking from the stern.
“An American submarine sank an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters. Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo. Quiet death,” US defence secretary Pete Hegseth said at the Pentagon.
“US forces have struck or sunk to the bottom of the ocean more than 20 ships from the Iranian regime,” US Central Command said in another post.
https://t.co/PiqQpVIrMu pic.twitter.com/Wc1e0B0um7
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) March 4, 2026
The strike on IRIS Dena is part of a broader escalation following the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as Israel and US launched military strikes across the West Asian country on 28 February. The US says its aim for the war is to neutralise Iranian threats by eliminating the country’s nuclear and military capabilities, including its navy.
On Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the warship was struck in international waters without warning, thousands of miles from the Gulf.
“Frigate Dena, a guest of India’s Navy carrying almost 130 sailors, was struck in international waters without warning… The US will bitterly regret the precedent it has set,” Araqchi said in a post on X.
The sinking in India’s neighbourhood drew sharp criticism from experts. Former Indian Navy chief Admiral Arun Prakash, writing on X, described the attack as “senseless, inflammatory, and condemnable”.
(Edited by Prerna Madan)
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