Sri Lanka has repatriated the bodies of 84 Iranian sailors who died when their frigate was sunk by an American submarine, the spokesperson of the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced.
The Iranian frigate "Dena", which was returning to Iran after participating in military exercises in Visakhapatnam, India, was torpedoed by an American submarine in Sri Lanka's exclusive economic zone on March 4. The ship sent out a distress signal and a rescue operation by the Sri Lankan Navy recovered 32 crew members. During the operation, the bodies of 84 sailors of the Iranian ship were also found.
The bodies of the dead sailors were later handed over to the Iranian Embassy in Sri Lanka. "The Iranian embassy sent 84 bodies on Friday," a Foreign Ministry spokesperson told Business Standard.
