A US submarine sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean using a torpedo, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said.
Speaking at the Pentagon alongside US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine, Hegseth said the vessel was struck in international waters.
“In the Indian Ocean, we sank an Iranian warship that thought it was safe,” Hegseth told reporters. “Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo.”
He did not name the ship.
However, earlier the Sri Lankan navy said it had received a distress call from an Iranian navy vessel identified as the IRIS Dena, which went down off the coast of Galle.
Casualties Reported After Sinking
Sri Lanka’s deputy foreign minister told local television that at least 80 people were killed in the sinking, according to Reuters.
A Sri Lankan navy spokesperson said documentation indicated about 180 people were on board.
The navy confirmed that 32 people had been rescued after the distress call.
If those figures are accurate, dozens remain unaccounted for.
Escalation Across the Region
The reported sinking comes amid escalating US-Israeli airstrikes inside Iran.
Israel said it struck “security headquarters” across Tehran as operations continued.
Meanwhile, fresh attacks — reportedly from Iran — were reported in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Turkey said “Nato defences” had intercepted an Iranian missile.
In Tehran, residents described worsening conditions.
“It’s getting worse and worse every day,” one man told the BBC.
A three-day funeral ceremony for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, which had been scheduled to begin later, was postponed.
‘Iran Tried to Kill Trump’
Hegseth also accused Iran of attempting to assassinate former US president Donald Trump.
“Iran tried to kill President Trump,” he said. “President Trump got the last laugh.”
Hegseth claimed the US had “hunted down and killed” the leader of a unit allegedly involved in an assassination attempt.
In 2024, US authorities charged an Afghan national over what they described as an Iranian-linked plot to kill Trump before the presidential election.
The US Department of Justice alleged that Farhad Shakeri was tasked with devising a plan to surveil and kill Trump.
School Strike Under Investigation
Hegseth said the US was investigating reports that a girls’ school in Minab had been struck, killing at least 153 people, including children, according to Iranian authorities.
“We of course never target civilian targets, but we’re taking a look and investigating that,” he said.
Pressed on whether US munitions were involved, Hegseth repeated that the matter was under investigation.
‘We Have Just Begun the Fight’
Hegseth praised Israel’s military operations, calling them “unmatched in skill and iron determination”.
“Four days in, we have just begun the fight,” he said.
He added that the US and Israel would soon achieve “total aerial superiority”.
