The Sri Lanka Navy Media Spokesperson, Commander Buddhika Sampath, stated that he strongly rejects claims made by certain foreign media outlets that the Iranian warship, which was attacked approximately 40 nautical miles off the coast of Sri Lanka, has sunk.
He made these remarks while addressing a special press conference held by the Sri Lanka Navy today (04) regarding the Iranian vessel incident.
Commander Sampath stated that the Navy’s primary concern at present is to save the lives of those aboard the vessel that was attacked.
“First and foremost, our focus is on rescuing the lives of those on the vessel that was hit. Only after that will we be able to obtain an investigation and technical report on how this incident occurred. Our main objective is to ensure the safety of any remaining individuals. We will be able to confirm in the future how many people were lost from this ship,” he said.
He further noted that, based on the information received when naval teams reached the scene of the incident, only a large oil slick was visible in the sea.
“According to the information available to us, when we arrived at the location of the accident, we observed only a large oil slick. Therefore, we can declare that the ship has sunk. However, Sri Lanka has rescued 32 individuals from the vessel so far and they have been admitted to the Karapitiya Hospital in Galle. Further details can be provided only after obtaining information from them,” he added.
Commander Sampath also stated that several bodies had been found floating in the sea and that it is suspected they are members of the ship’s crew.
These remarks were made during the same media briefing.
