Photo: razihusin / iStock / Getty Images
A U.S. Navy submarine torpedoed and sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean on Tuesday (March 3), killing at least 80 people and leaving nearly 150 others missing, as the conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran continues to escalate.
Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Secretary of War, confirmed the attack during a Pentagon briefing on Wednesday (March 4), saying the Iranian frigate Iris Dena "thought it was safe in international waters" before it was struck. "Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo — a quiet death," Hegseth told reporters.
The Iris Dena, one of Iran's newest warships, had a crew of 180 and issued a distress call at dawn, about 25 miles south of Galle, a port city on the southern coast of Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan authorities launched a search and rescue operation. Arun Hemachandra, Sri Lanka's deputy foreign minister, confirmed at least 80 people were killed. Foreign minister Vijitha Herath said 32 survivors had been rescued.
Search and rescue operations off the coast of Sri Lanka are ongoing as authorities work to account for the nearly 150 crew members of the Iris Dena still missing.
The Iris Dena had taken part in the "Milan" naval exercise in the Bay of Bengal, which ran from February 18 to February 25. The ship was heading back to Iran from an east Indian port when it was attacked.
Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called the sinking a historic milestone.
"For the first time since 1945, a United States Navy fast-attack submarine has sunk an enemy combatant ship. This is an incredible demonstration of America's global reach." He added that the U.S. has destroyed more than 20 Iranian naval vessels in total, saying the strikes have "effectively neutralised Iran's major naval presence."
Hegseth declared that the Iranian navy "rests at the bottom of the Persian Gulf" and is "ineffective, decimated, destroyed." He said the U.S. and Israel would have "complete control of Iranian skies, uncontested airspace" within a week. "America is winning," he said. "Decisively, devastatingly and without mercy."