(Image source from: Hindustantimes.com)
Following a report about a fire on a ship with Indian crew members near Oman, the US Central Command acknowledged that they launched two Hellfire missiles into the engine room of the vessel. This event marks the third incident this week involving an Indian crewed ship being attacked near Oman. In a message on X, the US Central Command stated, "U. S. Central Command (CENTCOM) took action against the Guinea-Bissau flagged M/T Jalveer as it tried to transport oil from Iran through the Gulf of Oman. A U. S. aircraft shot two Hellfire missiles into the engine room of the ship because the crew repeatedly did not follow instructions from U. S. forces. " According to Iran’s Mehr news outlet, five out of the 20 crew members were saved by passing vehicles and taken to Oman. India has strongly criticized the attacks on tankers operated by Indian sailors in the Gulf recently. Describing the attacks as "very concerning," the External Affairs Ministry called for an immediate stop to these actions.
"There have been multiple incidents involving Indian sailors in West Asia lately. We place great importance on the safety and well-being of our sailors' community. There is no need to reiterate this," said External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Thursday. "Yesterday, we denounced the attack on a ship off Oman’s coast, in which we sadly lost three Indian citizens. We called in the US CDA to express our strong objections. We expect the US to consider our protest seriously," added Jaiswal. MT Jalveer is the third vessel with an Indian crew to be attacked near Oman recently. Three Indian crew members were reported missing after a Palau-flagged oil tanker, Settebello, was attacked by US forces off the coast of Oman. The US military stated they fired at a tanker attempting to go through their blockade of Iran. Earlier, on Monday, a fire broke out on MT Marivex, which had 24 Indian seafarers on board, after it was attacked south of the Strait of Hormuz.
