Berliner Tageblatt - Sri Lanka repatriates remains of 84 Iranians killed in US attack

The seamen were killed when the IRIS Dena was torpedoed on March 4 just off the coast of Sri Lanka, in an incident that extended the Middle East war to the Indian Ocean.

An Airbus A340 chartered by Iran "left a short while ago carrying the remains of the sailors," an airport official at Mattala International Airport in the island's south told AFP by telephone.

"The departure was delayed because 84 sealed boxes had to be loaded," added the official who requested anonymity.

The destination of the flight was not disclosed.

The 32 sailors from the frigate who were rescued following the attack will remain in Sri Lanka for the time being, the Foreign Ministry said.

Of them, 22 have been discharged from the hospital and are being held at an air force base in the south of the island.

A second Iranian warship, the IRIS Bushehr, was allowed into Sri Lankan waters a day after Dena was sunk. Sri Lanka is providing safe harbour for the ship and its crew of 219.

Sri Lankan officials said they have not begun discussions on repatriating the Bushehr crew and those rescued from the Dena, but vowed that the sailors will be treated in line with Colombo's international obligations.

Sri Lanka is currently hosting a total of 251 Iranian sailors.

- 'Humanitarian considerations' -

Crewmembers from the Bushehr are held at a navy camp just north of Colombo, while their ship has been taken over by Sri Lanka's navy, which is trying to repair one of the two engines that were reportedly malfunctioning.

A third Iranian ship, IRIS Lavan, sailed past Sri Lanka and entered safe harbour in India's southern port of Kochi on the same day the Dena was sunk. Lavan's 183 crewmembers are in Indian custody.

Both Colombo and New Delhi have said they provided shelter to the Iranian sailors due to "humanitarian considerations" amid fears that they too could be killed in US attacks.

The ships had been taking part in a naval exercise organised by India off the coast of Visakhapatnam when the US and Israel began bombing Iran.

A local undertaker said the embalmed remains of the Iranian sailors were being sent back in sealed boxes.

The bodies, which were plucked from the Indian Ocean, were taken to Karapitiya Hospital in Galle, 115 kilometres (72 miles) south of the capital, where autopsies were carried out.

A local magistrate ordered that the bodies be handed over to the Iranian embassy in Colombo for repatriation to the next of kin.

There was no immediate comment from the Iranian embassy when contacted by AFP.

K.Thomson--BTB