After a fire incident was reported on a vessel with Indian crew members off the coast of Oman, the US Central Command admitted to firing two Hellfire missiles into the ship’s engine room.
This is the third ship with an Indian crew that came under attack near Oman this week.
In a post on X, the US Central Command said, “U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) acted against Guinea-Bissau flagged M/T Jalveer as it attempted to transport oil from Iran through the Gulf of Oman. A U.S. aircraft fired two Hellfire missiles into the ship’s engine room after the crew repeatedly failed to comply with directions from U.S. forces.”
According to their post, the US Central Command has disabled nine non-compliant vessels, redirected 135 ships that complied, and allowed 42 vessels supporting humanitarian aid to pass since initiating the blockade on April 13.
https://t.co/6VEqoDxDSb
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 11, 2026
According to Iran’s Mehr news agency, five of the 20 crew members were rescued by passing vehicles and taken to Oman.
India Condemns Attacks On Ships
India has strongly condemned the attacks on tankers manned by Indian seafarers in the Gulf in the last few days. Terming the attacks “deeply worrisome”, the External Affairs Ministry on Thursday called for an immediate end to such attacks.
“There have been several incidents involving Indian seafarers in West Asia in the last few days. We attach high importance to the welfare and well-being of our seafarers’ community. We need not re-emphasise this point,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday.
Read | “Deeply Worrisome, Must End Immediately”: India Condemns Attacks On Ships
“Yesterday, we condemned the attack on a ship off the coast of Oman in which, unfortunately, we lost three Indian nationals. We had summoned the US CDA here to register a strong protest. We expect the US to take due note of our protest,” Jaiswal added.
Third Ship Under Attack
MT Jalveer is the third ship with an Indian crew to come under attack near Oman in recent days. Three Indian crew members were reported missing after a Palau-flagged oil tanker, Settebello, was attacked by US forces off Oman. The US military said it had fired on a tanker attempting to breach its blockade of Iran.
Read | Third Ship With Indian Sailors On Fire Near Oman
Before that, on Monday, fire erupted aboard MT Marivex, carrying 24 Indian seafarers south of the Strait of Hormuz, after it was attacked.
