West Asia conflict: India condoles Khamenei's death; Misri visits Iran Embassy

India on Thursday condoled the killing of Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei against the backdrop of scathing criticism of the government by opposition parties for its silence on the assassination as well as on sinking of an Iranian ship by the US off the Sri Lankan coastSix days after Khamenei was killed in a joint strike on Tehran by the US and Israel Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visited the Iranian embassy and signed the condolence book on behalf of the government of India Misri also held a brief conversation with Iranian envoy Mohammad FathaliSeparately External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke to his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi and discussed the evolving situation in West Asia It was the second phone conversation between the two foreign ministers since February 28 when the US and Israel launched the attack on IranSincerest condolences on behalf of the government and people of India We pray for peace for the departed soul Misri wrote in the condolence book on Khameneis death in what is being seen by many as a signs of a subtle shift in New Delhis position on the conflictUnlike in May 2024 when Jaishankar visited the Iranian embassy to mourn the death of the then president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash New Delhis response to the Supreme Leaders death was handled by the foreign secretaryIn the last few days the government came under sharp attacks from the Opposition with Congress leader Sonia Gandhi saying its silence on the targeted assassination of Khamenei raised serious doubts about the direction and credibility of Indias foreign policyThough India called for resolution of the West Asia crisis through dialogue and diplomacy it chose not to react to Khameneis killingFollowing the military offensive Iran has carried out a wave of attacks mainly targeting Israel and American military bases in several Gulf countries including the UAE Bahrain Kuwait Jordan and Saudi ArabiaIn the last two days the conflict has widened significantly with attacks and counterattacks by both the sides triggering fears of a prolonged war in West AsiaNew Delhis condolence on Khameneis killing also came a day after the US sank Iranian warship IRIS Dena in international waters off Sri Lankas coast when it was returning home after participating in the Milan naval exercise a multilateral wargame hosted by IndiaAt least 87 Iranian military personnel were killed in the strikeBesides attending the Milan exercise the ship featured in the International Fleet Review organised by he Indian Navy in Vishakapatnam last monthIrans Foreign Minister Araghchi also made a mention of the sinking of the IRIS DenaThe US has perpetrated an atrocity at sea 2000 miles away from Irans shores Frigate Dena a guest of Indias Navy carrying almost 130 sailors was struck in international waters without warning he said on social mediaMark my words The US will come to bitterly regret precedent it has set he saidThe Indian Navy Thursday said it joined search and rescue operation after learning about a distress call from Iranian warship IRIS DenaFormer Indian Navy Chief Admiral Arun Prakash described the US action as a senseless and inflammatory actSinking of Iranian warship off southern tip of Sri Lanka with heavy loss of life is a senseless amp inflammatory act Initiating another dimension of violence in this openended conflict will spread alarm across the high seas amp disrupt global seaborne commerce Condemnable he said on social mediaFormer Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal said the US has ignored Indias sensitivities as the Iranian ship was in these waters because of Indias invitationI am told that as per protocol for this exercise ships cannot carry any ammunition It was defenceless The Iranian naval personnel had paraded before our President he saidThe attack by the US submarine was premeditated as the US was aware of the Iranian ships presence in the exercise to which the US navy was invited but withdrew from participation at the last minute presumably with this operation in mind he said on XWe are far from politically or militarily responsible for the US attack Our responsibility is at a moral and human plane he saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever