More than 200 Iranian sailors stranded after US torpedo attack return home

More than 200 Iranian sailors stranded after a US torpedo attack returned home after being stuck in Sri Lanka for more than a month. Aruna Jayasekara, Sri Lanka's Deputy Defence Minister, confirmed on Wednesday that 32 sailors rescued from the Iris Dena and 206 from Irins Bushehr, had left the country.

The Iranian warship, Iris Dena, sank on March 4 about 40km (25 miles) from Sri Lanka's southern coastline after it was hit by a torpedo from a US submarine, killing 104 sailors. On March 5, Sri Lanka took control of the Iranian naval vessel, Irins Bushehr, after it had requested to dock at one of country's ports after one of its engines malfunctioned. The crew of both ships were flown out on Tuesday night. The stranded sailors were granted 30-day entry visas by the Sri Lankan government and were housed in navy and air force camps. The Iris Dena had been returning from a military exercise hosted by India when it was attacked. The bodies of 84 Iranian sailors killed in the attack were recovered and later repatriated in a chartered plane arranged by Iran. Its sinking in international waters came just a few days into the current US-Israeli war with Iran and marked a dramatic widening of the conflict. Iran has since launched retaliatory strikes across the Middle East - targeting Gulf countries allied with the US. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said they would "never hesitate to protect humanity".

About 15 Iranian sailors will remain in Sri Lanka to operate the Irins Bushehr, which is anchored off Trincomalee in the northeast of the island. Sri Lanka had allowed the Iranian vessel to dock at a north-eastern port on March 5 after hours of discussion. **President Anura Kumara