Permission granted for Iranian warship with 208 onboard to enter Sri LankaNewsThe government today granted permission for an Iranian warship with 208 on board to enter the country. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told a news conference that the vessel ‘IRIS Bushehr’ had appealed for facilities to anchor in a Sri Lankan port, and accordingly permission had been granted on humanitarian grounds. Accordingly 208 persons including 84 cadet officers, 48 Naval officers and a crew of 53 on board have been transferred to Sri Lankan Naval vessels and brought to the Colombo port in Colombo, he said. However, the Iranian warship will sent to a port in Trincomalee considering that Colombo is a Commercial port. The appeal from Iran came after an US submarine destroyed an Iranian warship with 180 on board .

Source: Sunday Times March 06, 2026 00:06 UTC