Sri Lanka’s Navy has rescued 32 people after an Iranian Navy ship, IRIS Dena, sank in the early hours of Tuesday, March 3, 2026, off the coast of Sri Lanka. Authorities believe up to 140 others remain missing.
The distress call was received around 4:00 a.m. local time, prompting immediate search and rescue operations by the Sri Lankan Navy, even though the incident occurred beyond Sri Lanka’s territorial waters but within its search and rescue region.
Follow DDNewsOnline on Facebook For More Breaking News
Navy spokesman Budhika Sampath told the BBC: “Though it was beyond our waters, it was within our search and rescue region. So we were obliged to respond as per international obligations. We found people floating on the water, rescued them, and later when we inquired we found that those people are from an Iranian ship.”
He added that documentation on board indicated approximately 180 personnel were on the vessel, though the exact number of missing remains unconfirmed. Rescuers reported seeing oil patches on the water surface and floating life rafts, but no sign of the ship itself. The cause of the sinking is still unknown.
Follow And Like Us On Tiktok
Subscribe To The Best Team In Conservative, Business, Technology, Lifestyle And Digital News Realtime! support@ddnewsonline.com
Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuiyakontha, Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, earlier told BBC Sinhala that around 140 people are feared missing. The Navy has explicitly rejected social media reports suggesting a submarine attack caused the sinking, insisting that the incident is under investigation and no such evidence exists.
Sri Lanka’s Navy continues search and rescue operations in coordination with regional maritime authorities. The Iranian Navy has not yet issued an official statement on the incident or the status of the crew.
The IRIS Dena is a Moudge-class frigate commissioned into the Iranian Navy in 2015, primarily used for patrol and escort duties in the Persian Gulf and beyond.
For Breaking News And More Follow Us On Instagram
This is a developing story. DDNewsOnline is monitoring for updates on the rescue efforts, official statements from Iran, and any confirmed cause of the sinking.
DDNewsOnline – Lagos
By Ogungbayi Beedee Adeyemi
Send tips to: adeyemi@ddnewsonline.com
09164987165 / 08168555497