Overview
- Iran’s ambassador in Colombo said Sri Lanka’s navy chief invited the frigate IRIS Dena and two other Iranian ships for a friendly port call linked to India’s MILAN naval events.
- Officials in Sri Lanka played down the claim, saying any invitation was informal and not backed by written orders, as local reports described the ship waiting offshore before the strike.
- India quietly flew home more than 130 Iranian sailors and the bodies of dozens of shipmates from Kochi in a low‑profile humanitarian operation the foreign ministry confirmed without fanfare.
- Sri Lanka granted IRIS Bushehr access to Trincomalee and is holding its crew along with Dena survivors under neutral‑power rules, while a U.S. diplomatic cable urged Colombo not to repatriate them.
- Reporting attributes Dena’s sinking off Galle to a U.S. submarine, with accounts citing 80‑plus fatalities and about 32 survivors, and Iran’s envoy saying the crew received no warning and included naval musicians.