An Iranian naval frigate, the IRIS Dena, has sunk off the southern coast of Sri Lanka, leaving more than a hundred sailors unaccounted for and prompting a large-scale search and rescue operation. The vessel, carrying around 180 crew members, issued a distress call in the early hours of Wednesday before going down about 40 nautical miles south of the port city of Galle. Sri Lankan naval and air forces responded to the signal and launched rescue efforts, recovering dozens of injured personnel who were taken to hospitals for treatment.
The cause of the frigate’s sinking has not been officially confirmed. Some accounts suggest the ship may have been struck during a submarine attack, though Sri Lankan authorities have neither verified nor ruled out an external assault. The vessel had recently participated in a multinational naval exercise before its departure toward Iranian waters.
Amid the ongoing turmoil, families of the missing crew members and international observers are anxiously awaiting further updates, as efforts to locate additional survivors continue in the vast Indian Ocean.
