Kochi (Gurpreet Singh): In a significant diplomatic and humanitarian move, 183 Iranian sailors who were stranded in Kochi are scheduled to fly back to Iran on Friday night, March 13, 2026. The sailors arrived in India on board the warship IRIS Lavan, which docked at the southern port city on March 4 for essential maintenance. While the crew returns home, the vessel itself remains stationed at the Kochi port.
The repatriation follows a tense period for the Iranian flotilla that sailed eastwards toward India in mid-February. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, speaking at the Raisina Dialogue, clarified that India’s decision to allow the ship to dock was based on humanitarian grounds. He noted that the Iranian side had requested port access as the conflict in West Asia intensified, and New Delhi granted permission on March 1 to ensure the safety of the vessel and its crew.
Tragedy at Sea: The Sinking of IRIS Dena
The return of the Kochi-based sailors coincides with a somber operation in Sri Lanka, where authorities are repatriating the bodies of 84 Iranian sailors. These crew members were killed when their warship, IRIS Dena, was torpedoed and sunk by a U.S. submarine on March 4. The attack occurred approximately 38 kilometers west of the Sri Lankan port city of Galle.
IRIS Dena had been a high-profile participant in India’s International Fleet Review (IFR) on February 18 and the subsequent Milan exercise at Vishakhapatnam from February 19 to 26. The sinking has marked a major escalation in maritime hostilities since the broader conflict erupted on February 28.
Status of the Iranian Flotilla
Of the three warships that initially sailed toward the Indian Ocean, their current statuses are as follows:
- IRIS Lavan: Currently docked in Kochi, India, for maintenance; crew being repatriated tonight.
- IRIS Dena: Sunk by a U.S. submarine near Galle, Sri Lanka, on March 4.
- IRIS Bushehr: Currently sheltered at Trincomalee, Sri Lanka, after seeking emergency assistance from the Sri Lankan government.
India’s role in hosting the IRIS Lavan and facilitating the crew’s return reflects its ongoing “bridge-builder” diplomacy, maintaining humanitarian protocols even as regional tensions between the U.S.-Israel alliance and Iran continue to destabilize international waters.
