The Directorate General of Shipping said on Monday that three Indian seafarers lost their lives and another was injured amid the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
While the department did not disclose specific details about the incidents, it stated that the four individuals were serving on foreign-flagged vessels. It added that there had been no confirmed reports of casualties, detentions or hostile forces boarding Indian-flagged ships.
The Directorate, which functions under the Union shipping ministry, said it was closely monitoring maritime security developments in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf of Oman and nearby waters due to the escalating tensions involving Israel, the United States and Iran, Scroll.in reported.
According to the department, vessels in the region have faced reported threats such as missile and drone attacks, electronic interference and other maritime security risks.
On Saturday, Israel and the United States carried out a joint military operation aimed at weakening the Iranian government’s capabilities. The strikes took place against the backdrop of rising tensions over Tehran’s nuclear programme. Washington has positioned itself as a guarantor of Israel’s security, while Israel has repeatedly alleged that Iran is nearing the development of a nuclear weapon that could shift the regional balance of power. Iran, however, has consistently maintained that its nuclear programme is intended solely for civilian use.
Following the strikes, Iran retaliated by targeting Israel, US military bases in the region and some vessels.
On Monday, Iran claimed that the Strait of Hormuz had been closed to shipping traffic and warned that any vessel attempting to transit the strategic waterway would face attack. The strait, a narrow passage connecting the Gulf to the Arabian Sea, is a critical global shipping route.
General Sardar Ebrahim Jabari, an adviser to the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, reportedly warned that any ship trying to pass through would be set ablaze by Iranian forces.
Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported that an Indian mariner aboard a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman was killed after a bomb-laden drone boat struck the vessel off the coast of Muscat, the capital of Oman. The incident marked the first reported Indian fatality linked to the conflict.
A day earlier, a Palau-flagged oil tanker named Skylight was hit off the Omani coast, injuring four people on board. Of the 20 crew members, 15 were Indians and the rest were Iranians. The Oman Maritime Security Centre said that all crew members had been safely evacuated.