Indian government officials and the country’s largest sailor’s union issued statements Thursday condemning a US strike that killed three Indian nationals on a commercial vessel in the Gulf of Oman earlier this week.
The Forward Seamen’s Union of India warned that the “gruesome” attack on the Settebello, as well as other strikes on Indian-crewed vessels this week, demonstrates “the alarming deterioration of safety and security in one of the world’s most important maritime corridors and exposed thousands of seafarers to unacceptable risks.”
“The deaths of Aditya Sharma, Shivanand Chaurasia, and Patanala Suresh are a painful reminder that seafarers continue to bear the human cost of conflicts in which they have no stake,” said the union’s general secretary, Manoj Yadav. “Their sacrifice must not be forgotten, and their deaths must lead to concrete action to improve the protection of maritime workers everywhere.”
Randhir Jaiswal, a spokesperson for India’s foreign ministry, said in response to the US tanker strikes that “these attacks must cease.”
“We also call for dialogue and diplomacy so that we can have an early return to peace and stability in the region,” said Jaiswal, who noted that India’s government registered its “strong protest” with a US diplomat.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement Thursday that it has “disabled” three oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman this week, accusing the vessels of violating a US blockade on Iran that experts say is illegal under international law.
CENTCOM claimed that the Palau-flagged, Indian-crewed Settebello “attempted to transport Iranian oil” and “repeatedly failed to comply with directions from American forces” on Tuesday. In response, according to CENTCOM, a US aircraft “fired precision munitions into the ship’s engine room,” killing three Indian nationals.
CENTCOM did not mention any casualties in its statement.
“More victims of an illegal war,” Brian Finucane, senior adviser to the US Program at the International Crisis Group, wrote in response to news of the deadly US strike, which came amid the Trump administration’s broader assault on Iran that has killed thousands of people, hurled the Middle East into turmoil, and sparked global economic chaos.
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