Overview
- U.S. Defense Minister Pete Hegseth said a U.S. submarine sank the IRIS Dena with a torpedo about 40 kilometers south of Sri Lanka.
- Sri Lankan authorities reported a dawn distress call, launching sea and air searches that rescued 32 sailors and recovered multiple bodies.
- Casualty figures differ across outlets, with reports of at least 80 dead (Reuters) and separate accounts of 87 bodies recovered and 61 missing (Stern), as officials stress totals remain unconfirmed.
- The frigate carried roughly 180 crew members and had recently taken part in a multinational naval exercise in Visakhapatnam, according to Sri Lankan and wire reports.
- Survivors described an explosion before the ship went down, and U.S. statements describe a wider campaign that has already destroyed several Iranian vessels.