Sri Lanka claimed that it was "trying to safeguard?lives?" on a second Iranian vessel?offshore its coast, on Thursday. This comes a day after the U.S. launched a submarine attack on an Iranian warship, which Iran described as an "attack" the U.S. "bitterly regretted". Sri Lankan cabinet spokesperson told the parliament that Colombo knew that another Iranian vessel was in Sri Lanka’s exclusive economic zones outside its maritime border and that it was "addressing" the situation. A cabinet spokesman responded to an opposition leader's question about whether the government knew that another Iranian ship was close to the Port of Colombo. Nalinda Jayatissa, a spokesman for the cabinet, said that "the President, defence officials and all other officials relevant to this situation are aware of it and are taking action." "We will do everything we can to save lives." He didn't say if the ship was military or not. Jayatissa stated that the IRIS Dena had sunk 19 nautical mile off the southern port of Galle in Sri Lanka and that Colombo had dispatched two freezers to store the bodies that were recovered from the sea on Tuesday. Abbas Araqchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister, said that the warship had been struck without warning in international waters thousands of miles away from the Gulf where U.S. forces and Israelis are attacking Iran. Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile attacks. The U.S. is going to regret its precedent, Araqchi wrote in a X post. He added that the warship had been a guest ship of India's Navy and carried almost 130 sailors.

The search for missing Iranian sailors continues. On Wednesday, Sri Lankan rescuers responded early to a distress call sent by the IRIS Dena and found 32 survivors. Authorities said that search and rescue operations would continue Thursday for approximately 10 people still 'unaccounted for. They said that the 32 sailors who were rescued had minor injuries, and would be discharged from hospital by Thursday. Two policemen stood guard at the entrance of ward number 58. As nurses and doctors made their morning rounds, two policemen guarded the entrance to ward No. WARSHIP WAS INDIAN NAVY EXERCISE. The attack dramatically 'widens? the scope of a war. Pete Hegseth, U.S. Secretary of Defense, said that an American submarine had sunk a warship from Iran which thought it was in international waters. It was instead sunk by torpedo. ?Quiet death." According to a Pentagon video, the warship was hit by an 'explosion that blew the back of the ship apart, lifted it out of the water and caused it to sink from the stern. According to the website of the drill and Sri Lankan officials, IRIS Dena took part in a naval training exercise organized by India from February 18-25 and was on its way home. A spokesperson for the Indian Navy did not respond when asked to comment on the sinking of Dena. Reporting by Uditha Jaisinghe in Galle, and Jana Choukeir in Dubai. Writing by Shilpa jamkhandikar and YPrajesh. Editing by Saad sayeed and Philippa fletcher.

(source: Reuters)