Another fire incident has been reported on a vessel with an Indian crew, near Shahid Port off the coast of Oman. The ship, MT Jalveer, has 20 crew members aboard, according to the Forward Seamen's Union of India. This is the third ship with an Indian crew that came under attack near Oman this week.
The incident was confirmed by the Indian Embassy in Oman, which said it was closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with the local authorities for further details.
According to Iran's Mehr news agency, five of the 20 crew members were rescued by passing vehicles and taken to Oman.
This comes just after three Indian seafarers - Aditya Sharma, Shivanand Chaurasiya and Patnala Suresh - died after a US military strike on the Palau-flagged tanker MT Settebello. The tanker had a total crew of 28 members, including 24 Indian nationals and four foreign nationals - two Pakistanis, one Ukrainian, and one Russian - when it came under the US military's attack in the Gulf of Oman.
According to the US, its military conducted a "precision" strike on the vessel after it failed to follow instructions. The US also said the tanker was carrying oil from Iran.
Around the same time, tanker MT Marivex, carrying 24 Indian crew members, was struck by a US precision munition fired from an F/A-18 Super Hornet. A fire erupted, but all 24 Indian seafarers were safely rescued by Omani forces and airlifted to safety with no reported injuries.
India issues demarche to USIndia has issued a demarche to the US after a commercial vessel carrying Indian crew members was struck off the coast of Oman, leaving three Indians dead. The move came after India summoned the US Chargé d’Affaires in Delhi and conveyed its strong concerns over the incident and the safety of Indian nationals at sea. The protest marks one of India’s strongest diplomatic responses to a recent maritime incident involving a close strategic partner. In its official response, India condemned the attack on the commercial vessel and reiterated its longstanding position that civilian shipping and innocent crew members should never be endangered. |
