U.S. forces struck a commercial tanker in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday, the third such attack in a week on ships in the region, including one that killed three Indian seafarers and prompted a diplomatic protest from New Delhi.
The U.S. Central Command has said that each of the targeted ships had violated its blockade of Iran and “failed to comply with directions” from American forces. Oman’s military launched operations to rescue dozens of crew members, who were all Indian, from the stricken tankers.
But three crew members missing after a U.S. strike on the oil tanker Settebello on Wednesday were found dead, the Indian government said on Thursday. They were the first merchant sailors to be killed since the United States began enforcing the blockade that was imposed in April. In that period, nine noncompliant ships have been “disabled,” according to Centcom.
India’s foreign ministry summoned Jason Meeks, the deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi, late Wednesday to lodge a protest after the strike on the Settebello. The ministry said Thursday that an additional 20 Indian seafarers were rescued from the Jalveer, the third tanker, after it was attacked by the U.S. military. The first tanker, the Marivex, was struck on Monday.
Parvathaneni Harish, India’s permanent representative to the United Nations, said the country was “firmly opposed to attacks on merchant shipping as many of our nationals are prominent in its global work force,” in a statement at the United Nations Security Council. He also underscored that disruptions in the Middle East had “serious consequences for the Indian economy.”
India supplies 12 percent of the work force — about 300,000 people — for the global merchant shipping industry, according to Indian government figures. That means Indians are likely to be part of crews on many commercial ships.
“They are ordinary people, not trained for war,” said Manoj Yadav, general secretary of the Forward Seamen’s Union of India, who has been in regular contact with some of the crew members rescued from the ships. Mr. Yadav said it was “tragic” that they were stuck in a mess not of their making. “India needs to ask tough questions,” he added.
The stakes for India could be higher than a diplomatic fallout; it risks further souring ties between the countries, despite recent efforts to patch things up. India has tried to avoid provoking President Trump as it negotiates a final trade agreement and rushes to diversify its energy sources to meet its enormous domestic needs, now that it can no longer depend on imports of Iranian oil and shipping via the Strait of Hormuz.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India has said the Iran war presents severe risks to his country, and he has urged Indians to reduce fuel consumption. It has increased purchases of oil from countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and the United States. Venezuela is also an emerging supplier.
At a briefing on Thursday, India’s foreign ministry said that none of the three ships were owned by India; the Marivex and Settebello bear Palau flags, and the Jalveer carries a Guinea-Bissau flag. Asked if Indian crews were being targeted, Randhir Jaiswal, the ministry spokesman, said: “There is a conflict going on in the region. There are parties involved in it. If you piece them together, you’ll get a sense of why these attacks are happening. It’s a conflict zone. That’s the answer.”
Before the news of the third strike, on the Jalveer, the International Maritime Organization had condemned the attack on the Settebello for endangering the lives of seafarers and called for a “full and transparent investigation.”
Sarbananda Sonowal, India’s minister of ports, shipping and waterways, said in a post on X that it was a “profound loss to our maritime family.” He said he had directed government officials to ensure that the surviving crew members were repatriated from Oman, along with the remains of the deceased.
