More than 230 Iranian sailors have been repatriated from Sri Lanka following a series of naval disasters, including a deadly attack by a US submarine and a separate mechanical failure. Defence officials confirmed on Wednesday that the group, totalling 238 personnel, departed on a Turkish Airlines flight late Tuesday night.
The situation began on March 4 when the Iranian naval vessel 'Iris Dena' was targeted by the US military whilst outside Sri Lankan international waters. The attack, reportedly, claimed lives of 84 sailors, while 32 others were pulled from the sea by Sri Lankan rescue teams. These survivors were initially taken to an Air Force facility in Koggala, near the southern port of Galle, where many received medical treatment at the local national hospital.
Just three days later, a second Iranian ship, the 'Iris Bushehr', was granted permission to enter Sri Lankan waters after suffering an engine failure. More than 200 crew members from this second vessel were housed at the Welisara naval facility on the outskirts of Colombo.
The 238 men who returned to Iran this week comprised the survivors of the 'Iris Dena' and the stranded crew of the 'Iris Bushehr'. This follows an earlier repatriation on March 14, when the Iranian embassy arranged for the remains of the 84 sailors killed in the initial attack to be flown home.
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