New Delhi has issued an urgent condemnation following fresh projectile and drone strikes on merchant vessels operating near the vital Strait of Hormuz corridor, warning that repeated assaults on civilian shipping threaten global trade and endanger innocent maritime workers. The statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) comes as search-and-rescue operations intensify off the coast of Oman, where two Indian crew members remain unaccounted for after their commercial tanker was struck by an unmanned aerial drone.

Drone Strike at Sohar Anchorage: Two Crew Members Missing

The primary incident targeted the Nicaragua-flagged commercial tanker MT Petro Dolphin while anchored near Sohar Anchorage off the coast of Oman. The vessel was carrying 11 Indian seafarers when it was struck by an airborne drone. While emergency search teams successfully rescued nine crew members, two Indian sailors—identified by seafarers’ associations as Bir Bahadur Yadav and Amit Singh—remain missing. The Indian Embassy in Muscat is actively coordinating with Omani naval authorities, regional port administrations, and the vessel management company to maintain round-the-clock rescue operations.

Second Vessel Struck: Fire Aboard MT Valthera

In an almost simultaneous incident underscoring the worsening security environment across Persian Gulf shipping lanes, a second commercial vessel, the Marshall Islands-flagged MT Valthera, was hit by an unknown projectile. The impact ignited an onboard fire that crew members fought to contain. The vessel also had 11 Indian seafarers onboard. Fortunately, maritime emergency services confirmed that all 11 Indian personnel aboard the MT Valthera were evacuated safely with no casualties reported from the fire.

New Delhi’s Stern Diplomatic Warning: Freedom of Navigation Under Threat

Expressing grave concern over the escalation, India’s Ministry of External Affairs affirmed that attacks against non-combatant commercial vessels are completely unacceptable and must stop immediately. New Delhi emphasized that such incidents directly jeopardize freedom of navigation, disrupt critical energy lifelines, and escalate geopolitical instability across West Asia. Because Indian seafarers constitute a significant portion of the global maritime workforce navigating these transit corridors, Indian authorities reiterated that civilian mariners cannot be turned into targets of regional conflicts.

Global Trade and Maritime Risks Surge Across Hormuz Choke Point

The attacks follow weeks of heightened military posturing and backchannel tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most critical maritime transit passage through which roughly one-fifth of global petroleum flows. International shipping bodies, maritime insurers, and navies have raised their threat advisories, warning that asymmetric drone strikes and projectile attacks are driving freight insurance premiums to near-record highs. India, which relies heavily on the Persian Gulf for crude and liquefied natural gas imports, continues to press for immediate restraint, diplomatic dialogue, and unimpeded safety for merchant mariners operating in international waters.