19 Iranian tankers that cannot return to Iranian ports because of the US naval blockade are short of drinking water, food and fuel in international waters off the coast of Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government has said it has no plans for now to help the tankers, and Alireza Delkhosh, the Islamic Republic's ambassador in Colombo, has protested this position.
According to Euronews Persian, Tushara Rodrigo, spokesman for Sri Lanka's foreign ministry, told the Associated Press on Friday, 9 October, that the ships are about 24 nautical miles from the coast and that Colombo must weigh the national interest and possible consequences before taking any action. He added that private maritime service companies are aware of the risk of US secondary sanctions. The Wall Street Journal had earlier reported that about 20 empty Iranian tankers were stranded in the area, many with their engines shut off for lack of fuel. No independent information has been published on the number of crew members, their health or their remaining supplies.
The Sri Lankan government's position and US pressure
Vijitha Herath, Sri Lanka's foreign minister, said on 4 October, according to the Colombo newspaper Daily Mirror, that about 47 ships are anchored outside the country's territorial waters, about 19 of them Iranian. He rejected any direct US order or pressure, but said the government has not provided logistical services to sanctioned ships and that private companies are themselves responsible for understanding the legal situation. On 30 September, citing Sri Lankan government documents, the Wall Street Journal had reported that US officials asked Colombo to stop local suppliers.
In an opinion piece in the Sri Lankan newspaper The Guardian, the Islamic Republic's ambassador, citing the Convention on the Law of the Sea and maritime safety and rescue regulations, wrote that Sri Lanka cannot refuse to meet the crews' basic needs, and called Colombo's compliance with US sanctions inconsistent with the country's tradition of non-alignment. The same week, according to Euronews, the US warship USS Tulsa docked at the port of Colombo on Wednesday, 7 October, for refuelling and supplies, and left after two days.
Background: the blockade and sanctions on the Islamic Republic's oil fleet
The United States resumed its blockade of Iran's ports on 14 July 2026, after the collapse of the memorandum of understanding that ended the war. On Thursday, 8 October, the US Treasury Department also sanctioned 17 tankers of the Islamic Republic's shadow fleet, part of a campaign that Scott Bessent has called the Islamic Republic's "total isolation". It is unclear how many of the stranded tankers are on the new list.
In February–March 2026, after the warship Dena was sunk by a US submarine's torpedo near the country's coast, Sri Lanka gave medical aid to the wounded sailors. According to the Associated Press, 87 sailors died in that incident.
The crews of 19 Iranian tankers, whose return to Iranian ports has been made impossible by the US blockade, are stranded at sea without water or food.
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