19 sailors dead after Iran accidentally fires missile on own ship

May 11, 2020

At least 19 Iranian sailors are dead and 15 injured after an accidental missile firing during a planned naval exercise in the Gulf of Oman, Iran’s state-run news agency reports.

The Iranian press said the Hendijan-class Konarak was struck on Sunday afternoon during a drill near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategically important waterways. 

According to state TV, an Iranian navy frigate accidentally fired at the support ship near the port of Jask, killing 19 people. Other early reports put the death toll near 40. 

“Naval relief and rescue teams reached the location shortly after the incident, retrieving the injured and the martyrs from the vessel and transferring them to medical centers,” read a navy statement carried by state TV.  

Iranian officials provided few details on the extent of the damage. Despite some reports the vessel had sunk, the army-affiliated Tasnim News Agency posted a video Monday appearing to show the fiery aftermath of a still-floating ship.