Sri Lanka rescues 32 critically injured sailors after Iranian warship attacked by submarine

Sri Lanka on Wednesday rescued 32 “critically injured” sailors from an Iranian ship that sank after an explosion nearly 40 km south of the island country, AFP quoted Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath as saying.

The frigate IRIS Dena was attacked by a submarine, Reuters quoted an unidentified Sri Lankan Navy official as saying. The warship reportedly has a capacity of 180 crew members.

The warship had in February attended an International Fleet Review in Vishakhapatnam, where it had been docked alongside ships from several other countries, The Indian Express reported.

Congress leader Pawan Khera noted that the explosion took place “at the edge of Indian waters near Sri Lanka”.

“Does India have no influence left in its own neighbourhood?” he asked. “Or has that space also been quietly ceded to Washington and Tel Aviv?”

On Saturday, Israel and the US launched a joint operation against the Iranian regime, claiming that its actions posed an “existential threat” to Tel Aviv. Washington acts as a guarantor of Israel’s security.

The attacks came amid tensions between the three countries over Tehran’s nuclear programme. Israel has been claiming that Iran is close to obtaining a nuclear weapon, which could alter the regional security balance. Tehran, however, has long maintained that its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes.

Iran retaliated to the joint operation by striking Israel and US...

Read more