 "Indian national killed in Iranian attack on US vessel near Iraq")
An Indian national has reportedly been killed in an attack carried out by Iran against a US-flagged ship near Iraq, as the war wreaks havoc on waterways.
According to a report by PTI, US-owned and Marshal Island-flagged oil tanker Safesea Vishnu was attacked off Khor Al Zubair port on Wednesday inside Iraq’s territorial waters by an Iranian “suicide” boat.
While the 27 other crew members of the vessel have been rescued by officials, an Indian national, whose name has not been made public yet, died in the attack.
The company operating Safesea has called on the Indian government to condemn the attack and take urgent action to ensure the safety of crew onboard ships in the region amid the escalating West Asia conflict.
According to information on the website Vessel Finder, the 228.6 meters long and 32.57 meters wide Safesea Vishnu is a crude oil tanker built in 2007, currently sailing under the flag of the Marshall Islands.
Second ship attacked near Iraq
The Iraqi State Organisation for Marketing of Oil (SOMO) confirmed in a statement that two oil tankers were attacked, without providing details on how.
Maltese-flagged oil tanker ZEFYROS was attacked as it was preparing to enter the port of Khor Al-Zoubair, where it would have taken on board an additional 30,000 tons of liquid naphtha – primarily used in petrochemicals, SOMO said.
Iraq’s oil ministry said in a statement on Thursday it had “deep concern” about incidents involving oil tankers in the Gulf, without providing details.
“The safety of navigation in international maritime corridors and energy supply routes must remain free from regional conflicts,” the ministry added.
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View AllUS attacks minelaying vessels
The US military has said that it destroyed 16 Iranian mine-laying vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, after President Donald Trump warned that any mines laid by Iran in the region must be torn down immediately.
In apparent response to media reports that Iran had begun laying mines in the waterway, a key passage for oil shipments, Trump posted on Truth Social: “If Iran has put out any mines in the Hormuz Strait, and we have no reports of them doing so, we want them removed, IMMEDIATELY!”
According to a report by CNN, Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Sources told the news outlet that the mining is not extensive yet, adding that only a few dozen of them have been laid till now.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, now effectively controlling the strait alongside the country’s regular navy, can deploy a coordinated “gauntlet” of scattered mine-laying vessels, explosive-filled boats, and coastal missile batteries.
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