An Iranian warship has docked in the southwest Indian port of Kochi, a government source in New Delhi said Friday, after a US submarine sank another Iranian frigate and a third docked in Sri Lanka."IRIS Lavan... docked at Kochi on March 4. In this context, its crew of 183 are currently accommodated at naval facilities in Kochi," the source said.
Like the IRIS Dena, the Iranian warship sunk by a US submarine Wednesday off the coast of Sri Lanka, IRIS Lavan had also been part of a naval fleet review off India's port city of Visakhapatnam.
"Days before the IRIS Dena incident south of Sri Lanka, India was approached by Iran to take in the Iranian Ship IRIS Lavan," the source said.
"This request was received on February 28, 2026, indicating that a docking at Kochi was urgent as the vessel had developed technical issues," the source added.
"Approval was accorded for the docking on March 1."
On Thursday, the crew from Iranian IRIS Bushehr were brought ashore in Sri Lanka, and the crew were being accommodated at a military camp near the capital Colombo.
The vessel reported engine trouble and sought port entry after the Iranian vessel was hit by a US torpedo.
bb-pjm/mlm
DENA
