The United States has asked Sri Lanka not to repatriate the surviving sailors from an Iranian warship that the US sank earlier this week. Washington has also urged Colombo not to return the crew of another Iranian vessel currently under Sri Lankan control.

A report by Reuters said the request appears in an internal cable from the United States Department of State.

US submarine sank IRIS Dena near Sri Lanka

A US submarine struck the Iranian warship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean on Wednesday. The attack took place about 19 nautical miles from the southern Sri Lankan port city of Galle.

The strike killed dozens of Iranian sailors. Analysts say the operation marked a major escalation in Washington’s military campaign against the Iranian navy.

The previously unreported diplomatic cable, dated March 6, said that Jayne Howell, the charge d’affaires at the US embassy in Colombo, urged Sri Lankan officials not to send the captured sailors back to Iran.

Her request covered both the crew of the Iranian vessel IRIS Booshehr and the 32 survivors rescued from the sunken IRIS Dena.

US concerned about propaganda and possible defections

The cable stated that “Sri Lankan authorities should minimise Iranian attempts to use the detainees for propaganda.”

It also said Howell informed Israel’s ambassador to India and Sri Lanka that there were no current plans to send the Iranian sailors back to their country.

According to the cable, the US envoy also asked whether there had been any interaction with the detained sailors to encourage “defection.”

Iran seeks help to repatriate bodies

Meanwhile, Iran has asked Sri Lanka for assistance in returning the bodies of sailors killed in the attack.

Sri Lanka’s deputy minister for health and mass media, Hansaka Wijemuni, told Reuters that Iran had requested help in repatriating the bodies of those who died aboard the IRIS Dena. However, officials have not yet set any timeline for the process.

Before the incident, the Dena had taken part in naval exercises organised by India in the Bay of Bengal last month. The ship was heading back to Iran when the US submarine attacked it.

A US official, who spoke anonymously to Reuters, said the ship was armed at the time of the strike. The official also said no warning was issued before the torpedo attack.

Sri Lanka shelters crew of another Iranian vessel

A day after the attack, Sri Lanka began transferring sailors from another Iranian vessel, the naval auxiliary ship IRIS Booshehr. The ship had become stranded in Sri Lanka’s exclusive economic zone, although it was outside the country’s territorial waters.

Authorities moved 208 crew members from the vessel to land on Thursday. Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said the country had a “humanitarian responsibility” to provide shelter and assistance to the sailors.

Rare US naval strike since World War II

The torpedo strike on the IRIS Dena was described by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth as a “quiet death”. Military experts say such an attack is extremely rare. It is the first time since World War II that the United States has used a submarine to sink a surface warship in this way.

The incident also shows how the confrontation with Iran is spreading to new regions. According to the US State Department cable, the IRIS Booshehr will remain under Sri Lankan custody for the duration of the ongoing conflict.

On Friday, Sri Lankan authorities escorted the ship to an eastern harbour. Most of the sailors were then moved to a naval facility near Colombo.