New Delhi: India Wednesday condemned the attack on another Iran-linked oil tanker off the Oman coast, which had 24 crew members on board, of which three are reportedly missing.
The Settebello issued a distress call Thursday after a fire was reported in its engine room. The vessel reported at least one casualty. Media reports from some of the largest shipping news networks globally such as TradeWinds indicated that the fire was the result of a missile strike.
“We condemn the attack on the commercial vessel Settebello off the coast of Oman, earlier today. Of the 24 Indian crew onboard, 21 Indians have been rescued thus far and 3 Indians are reportedly missing. Our embassy in Oman is closely monitoring the situation and proactively coordinating with the Omani authorities in the ongoing Search and Rescue operation,” read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said in an incident report published Thursday: “UKMTO has received a report of an incident 20NM northeast of Sohar, Oman. Local authorities have reported a tanker has experienced a fire in their engine room and are on the scene assisting with the evacuation of the crew. The vessel is reporting 1 casualty and 2 crew members missing. No environmental impact reported. Authorities continue investigating.”
The Indian embassy in Oman also posted an update on X.
“We are closely monitoring the situation and in close touch with the local authorities. We shall update soon,” the embassy said in its statement. This is the second serious incident of an Iran-linked oil tanker being damaged in three days.
The Omani Navy responded to the distress calls and is assisting in the evacuation of the crew. The origin of the missile strike is yet unclear.
However, on 8 June, the US Navy struck MT Marivex, a Palau-flagged oil tanker that was attempting to navigate through the contested waters of the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively closed by Iran since the start of the ongoing war at the end of February.
The US Navy had warned the ship, which was sanctioned by American authorities in December 2025, a number of times before a F/A-18 Hornet aircraft launched a precise munition at the oil tanker. The US’ Central Command (CENTCOM) had said that the unladen oil tanker was hit after it attempted to break its blockade and sail to Iran.
The Marivex was crewed by 24 Indian seafarers. All of them were safely evacuated by the Omani Navy, after coordination between various agencies between the Gulf Kingdom and Indian authorities.
The US imposed a naval blockade on Iran on 13 April, in an attempt to force Tehran to negotiate an end to the almost four month war. A fragile ceasefire has been in place since 8 April. However, the US Tuesday launched strikes on various Iranian locations, following the loss of an Apache helicopter.
Iranian forces had shot down the AH-64 Apache near the Strait of Hormuz. The two pilots were safely rescued by the American Navy.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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