At least one Indian seafarer was killed when a commercial ship was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, AFP has reported, citing statements from Oman and India.
Oman’s Maritime Security Center said in a post on X that the Cape Dao, a bulk carrier flying the flag of Antigua and Barbuda, was struck about 2.5 nautical miles off the coast of the Musandam Governorate, Oman’s exclave on the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in “a fire breaking out in the engine room and the death of one of its crew members.”
The Omani security center said that Oman’s navy helped evacuate 27 crew members. India’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that “one Indian national tragically lost his life” in the incident and strongly condemned the attack.
“The targeting of commercial shipping, seafarers and civilian infrastructure in the region must end, and free and unimpeded navigation and commerce through the international waterways in the region must be restored at the earliest,” the Indian Foreign Ministry said.
Multiple Indian civilian mariners have been killed in the region since the US and Israel started the Iran war on February 28, including three who were killed by a June US bombing of a commercial ship that the US military claimed was attempting to run the US blockade of Iranian ports.
Iran is suspected of being behind the Wednesday attack on the Cape Dao, but it hasn’t taken credit. Multiple commercial ships have come under attack in the Strait of Hormuz this week, and the US has also been silent about the attacks, appearing to back down on its previous policy of bombing Iranian tankers in response to strikes on commercial shipping.
