Two Indian Seafarers Missing After Drone Strike on Tanker Off Oman; India Urges De-escalation
India’s External Affairs Ministry condemned attacks on two tankers on 11 October, one of which left two Indian crew members missing, and called for an end to strikes on merchant shipping.
Two Indian seafarers are missing after a drone struck a tanker at an anchorage in Oman on 11 October, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, as attacks on commercial ships around the Gulf region continued. The Tribune reported that the MT Petro Dolphin, a Nicaragua-flagged tanker, was hit at Sohar Anchorage, according to Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal. Eleven Indian seafarers were on board, of whom nine were rescued and are safe.
Sonowal said the local Coast Guard was conducting search-and-rescue operations for the two missing crew members, Maritime Gateway reported. The MEA said the Embassy of India in Muscat was monitoring the situation and coordinating with Omani authorities and ship management companies to locate the missing seafarers and assist the crew. Some other reports placed the strike in the Hormuz area, but the accounts citing the Indian government named Sohar Anchorage.
A second vessel, the Marshall Islands-flagged MT Valthera, was hit by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, causing a fire on board. All 11 Indian crew members on that ship were reported safe.
The incidents were not the first involving Indian crews this week. On 9 October the Panama-flagged crude oil tanker MT Gem No. 2 was struck by a drone at Sharjah Anchorage, and all 22 Indian nationals on board were safe. On 6 October, MT On Peace was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz, and 11 Indian seafarers were injured and evacuated to Khasab in Oman, Maritime Gateway reported.
In its statement, issued on 11 October, the MEA condemned the attacks and called for immediate de-escalation and a resolution through dialogue and diplomacy. “Attacks on commercial vessels, seafarers and civilian infrastructure must cease,” it said. The ministry also called for freedom of navigation and unimpeded maritime trade in line with international law.
The attacks come against the backdrop of the war involving the United States, Israel and Iran. Al Jazeera reported on 4 October that the Strait of Hormuz has been largely blocked or disrupted since US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on 28 February, and that about one-fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas normally passes through it. The New Arab reported on 12 October that Iran was still reviewing a US response on reopening the strait and would reply through intermediaries, while Brent crude neared $107 a barrel.
India has also raised the safety of shipping at the United Nations. The Tribune noted that India and Liberia launched a Group of Friends on the Safety and Security of Shipping and Seafarers at the 81st session of the UN General Assembly. The two missing seafarers had not been located at the time of the reports.
