Saturday, July 18, 2026

Survivors of sunken Iranian naval vessel depart Sri Lanka

Survivors from the Iranian naval vessel IRIS Dena, which was sunk in a U.S. attack earlier this year, have departed Sri Lanka for Iran.

• April 15, 2026
Iranian vessel
Iranian vessel

Survivors from the Iranian naval vessel IRIS Dena, which was sunk in a U.S. attack earlier this year, have departed Sri Lanka for Iran, a senior government official confirmed.

According to Aruna Jayasekara, 32 survivors were repatriated on Tuesday night, along with more than 200 personnel aboard the IRIS Bushehr. The group left the country on a special flight.

The IRIS Dena was reportedly attacked and sunk by a U.S. submarine near Sri Lankan waters in early March, during the initial phase of escalating conflict in the Middle East.

During subsequent rescue operations, the Sri Lankan Navy recovered 87 bodies and rescued 32 survivors.

The IRIS Bushehr had earlier sought permission to enter Sri Lankan waters in early March.

On March 6, the Sri Lankan Navy evacuated its personnel to Colombo Port, where they remained under official supervision until their departure.

(Xinhua/NAN)

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

U.S. Mission[Credit: X.com]

World

U.S. issues security alert to Americans worldwide as Iran kills two soldiers

The U.S. government issued a warning to all Americans worldwide amid the escalating war against Iran.

President Bola Tinubu (Credit: Presidency)

Heading 3

Tinubu’s scorecard is 139 million Nigerians in poverty; he should resign, not seek re-election: ADC

“The evidence of 139 million people living in poverty and 17 million at risk of starvation is President Tinubu’s scorecard,” the party said.

Flooded Lagos road used to illustrate the story

Lagos

Lagos govt working to tackle flooding, says SSG

She said the government was assessing critical drainage channels and other vulnerable locations to strengthen ongoing flood control measures.

Anambra road crash

States

Three killed, four injured in Anambra road crash: FRSC

The FRSC said the accident occurred on Friday along the Nnobi–Agulu–Awka road.

Atiku standing with Amaechi

Politics

2027: Group asks ADC, Atiku to drop Amaechi as vice-presidential candidate

The group accused Mr Amaechi of desperation, saying that he lacked the grassroots strength required to win the election.

Jens Spahn. [PHOTO CREDIT: ZDF]

Heading 4

German lawmaker resigns after backlash for welcoming child through surrogacy

The 46-year-old politician and his party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), had backed a ban on surrogacy.