United States Central Command on Thursday, June 11, confirmed it was behind the attack on the third ship carrying Indians off the coast of Oman.
“US forces disabled an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman at 11:20 pm on June 10 after the vessel violated the blockade against Iran by attempting to transport Iranian oil, marking the third commercial ship disabled by American forces this week,” US CENTCOM said in a statement.
It claimed to have been acting against the motor tanker (MT) Jalveer as it attempted to transport oil from Iran through the Gulf of Oman. A US aircraft fired two American precision-guided Hellfire missiles directly into the ship’s engine room. The crew “repeatedly failed to comply with directions from US forces,” the Central Command said.
MT Jalveer, carrying seafarers from India, caught on fire on Thursday, becoming the third vessel linked to Indian crew members to be involved in a maritime incident in the region within four days. Visuals circulating online showed dense smoke rising from the ship.
The tanker reportedly had 20 crew members on board when the incident occurred. The Oman Coast Guard dispatched a rescue boat several hours later to assist those aboard the vessel.
According to the US Central Command, the blockade is being enforced “impartially” against vessels from all nations entering or leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas, including ports on the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
“CENTCOM forces have 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,” the statement read.
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