Sri Lanka, March 5 -- The bodies of 84 individuals who were on an Iranian vessel that sank after a U.S. attack in southern waters beyond Sri Lanka's maritime boundary have been recovered, the Sri Lanka Navy has announced.

Accordingly, the Navy stated that search operations for the missing are continuing.

The vessel IRIS Dena, belonging to the Navy sank in deep waters south of Sri Lanka after being attacked by a U.S. submarine.

The ship, which had a crew of 180, had participated in an international naval fleet review and military exercise in Visakhapatnam, India, and was returning to Iran when the incident occurred.

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth yesterday confirmed that the US sank "an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in...