Iran vows revenge over US attack on frigate that killed 104 sailors

A senior Iranian military commander has vowed revenge for the deaths of 104 sailors in what he described as an unprovoked US torpedo attack on the frigate Dena, calling it “a cowardly act of terrorism” that international organisations have failed to condemn.

Deputy Army Commander for Coordination Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari made the remarks during a televised programme on Friday, saying the Dena had been on a peaceful training mission at the time of the incident, News.Az reports, citing Iran’s Press TV.

“Our ship had gone on a peace and friendship exercise and was training. It carried no combat weapons,” Sayyari said.

“These martyrs were innocently killed. If they were men of the battlefield, why did they attack someone in such a treacherous manner? We will avenge these martyrs.”

According to Press TV, the Dena, a Moudge-class frigate, was torpedoed and sunk by the US Navy submarine USS Charlotte in international waters off Galle, Sri Lanka, on 4 March.

The vessel had been returning from the International Fleet Review 2026 naval exercise hosted by India, a multinational event to which Iran had been officially invited.

Sayyari criticised international organisations and human rights bodies for what he described as their silence on the incident.

“Why don’t international and human rights organisations say anything about these issues? We have given 104 martyrs and the bodies of 20 of our martyrs remain in the sea and have not returned,” he said.

According to the Iranian Army, 136 personnel were on board the frigate when the USS Charlotte allegedly fired two Mark 48 torpedoes without warning. One hundred and four were killed, 32 were wounded and rescued by Sri Lankan forces, while the remains of 20 crew members were never recovered.

Sayyari also praised Iran’s domestically produced drones, describing them as “unrivalled” and noting what he said was a high production rate despite difficult conditions.

“Drones have been unrivalled in the Army and their production rate is very high,” he said, adding that the Islamic Republic of Iran Army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have used drones against enemy positions, with personnel killed in those operations.

He rejected claims that Iran’s naval power had been destroyed, saying: “We have had and continue to have power in the region.”

Sayyari added that the western side of the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway itself, and the Persian Gulf are under the “tight control” of the IRGC Navy, while the eastern side of the Strait of Hormuz and the northern Indian Ocean are under the control of the Islamic Republic of Iran Navy.

“No vessel can enter without our permission,” he said.

News.Az