US Sinks Iranian Warship; 87 Dead

New Delhi/Colombo: In a significant escalation of the West Asia crisis, a US submarine on Wednesday torpedoed and sank an Iranian warship in international waters off Sri Lanka's coast when it was returning after participating in the Milan naval exercise, a multilateral wargame hosted by India. IRIS Dena was part of Indian Navy's premier multilateral maritime exercise Milan.

The mega exercise last month saw participation of 42 war ships and submarines that included 18 ships from friendly foreign countries. The warship had also featured in the International Fleet Review hosted by the Indian Navy in Visakapatnam last month. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, confirming the strike, said at a Pentagon media briefing that it was the first sinking of an enemy warship by a torpedo since World War II. The Associated Press, quoting Sri Lankan Navy, reported that 87 bodies were recovered and that 32 people were rescued following sinking of the war ship IRIS Dena. “An American submarine sank an Iranian war ship that thought it was safe in international waters.... Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo,” Hegseth said.

The incident marks a major escalation of the conflict between the US and Iran outside of the Persian Gulf and throwing up questions relating to maritime security in the Indian Ocean that is large ly considered as the back yard of the Indian Navy. The Pentagon has also released a short video of the sinking of the Iranian frigate. The warship IRIS Dena is a Moudge-class frigate and had nearly 180 crew members on board. Sri Lankan officials said a major search and rescue operation was underway to rescue the survivors. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath said the military rescued 32 critically wounded sailors.

The military of the island nation launched the search and rescue operation after receiving dis tress signal from the Iranian warship, they said. Former Indian Navy Chief Admiral Arun Prakash described the US action as a “senseless” and “inflammatory act”. “Sinking of Iranian war ship, off southern tip of Sri Lanka, with heavy loss of life is a senseless & inflammatory act.

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP): Iran's regime is being "absolutely crushed" by the US-Israeli war against the Islamic republic, the White House said Wednesday.

"Under the leadership of President Donald J. Trump, the rogue Iranian terrorist regime is being absolutely crushed," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told a news conference.

Muscat (AP): A container ship was attacked Wednesday afternoon off the coast of Oman, causing fire in its engine room, an agency of the UK military said.

The vessel was transiting eastbound through the Strait of Hormuz, 2 nautical miles north of Oman, when it was hit by an unknown projectile, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, UKMTO.

Oman, long an intermediary between the West and Iran, has repeatedly come under attack by Iran.

Tehran: NATO defense systems have intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran as it headed toward Turkey’s airspace, the Turkish defense ministry said.

A ministry statement said the missile was detected after crossing the Iraqi and Syrian airspace and was intercepted by NATO units stationed in the eastern Mediterranean.

Debris from the missile fell into a district of Hatay province, near the border with Syria. There were no casualties.

“Every step taken to defend our territory and airspace will be taken resolutely and without hesitation,” the defense ministry said. “We remind all parties that we reserve the right to respond to any hostile actions against our country.”