Three Indian seafarers lost their lives when US forces struck the Palau-flagged tanker MT Settebello in the Gulf of Oman on 10 June, an incident that has thrust India’s large maritime workforce into the volatile centre of US-Iran tensions and prompted a sharp diplomatic response from New Delhi.
The attack, which the US military said targeted a vessel allegedly attempting to breach its blockade on Iranian ports, occurred about 20 nautical miles north-east of Sohar, Oman. Of the 28 crew members aboard, 24 were Indian. Twenty-one survivors were rescued by Omani authorities, but three men — cadet Aditya Sharma, fitter Shivanand Chaurasiya, and chief engineer Patnala Suresh — were killed. Their bodies were later recovered and identified.
This was not an isolated event. Indian officials and shipping sources indicate it forms part of a series of US actions against vessels in the region over recent days, raising alarm in New Delhi over the safety of thousands of its nationals who form a backbone of global commercial shipping.
India’s government has moved swiftly on multiple fronts. The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, under Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, has placed operations on the “highest alert”. The Directorate General of Shipping is maintaining round-the-clock surveillance of high-risk areas, including the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman, while issuing stringent safety advisories to vessel operators and seafarers.
Emergency coordination involving the Indian Navy, the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian missions abroad, and friendly maritime administrations — notably Oman — has facilitated the rescue and is now fast-tracking repatriation of survivors and the return of the deceased for last rites. The Seafarers Welfare Fund Society is releasing Rs 10 lakh (approximately £9,000) to each of the bereaved families.
Diplomatic Pushback
In parallel, India has conveyed its concerns directly to Washington. The Ministry of External Affairs summoned the US Chargé d’Affaires in New Delhi to lodge a strong protest, expressing “deepest concerns” over the repeated incidents.
Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India had registered its position firmly, emphasising that such attacks on commercial shipping are “deeply worrisome” and a consequence of the broader regional conflict.
New Delhi has urged the US to halt strikes on merchant vessels and called for de-escalation through dialogue and diplomacy to restore stability. Officials have stopped short of explicitly demanding that American forces cease all operations involving Indian-crewed ships but have made clear their opposition to any targeting of commercial shipping that endangers civilian crews. India has reiterated its long-standing position against attacks on merchant vessels and civilian maritime infrastructure, a stance it has maintained since the wider conflict intensified earlier this year.
The incidents highlight the precarious position of India, which maintains strategic ties with the United States while relying heavily on energy imports and having substantial economic stakes in the Gulf. With an estimated 20,000 Indian seafarers often transiting these waters, the human and economic risks are acute.
Families of the victims have spoken of sudden panic aboard the vessel, with reports of distress calls describing fire and chaos after the strike on the engine room. In coastal communities across India that supply much of the world’s seafaring labour, the news has brought grief mixed with anxiety about loved ones still at sea.
Maritime security experts note that the Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most critical chokepoints for oil transport.
As US enforcement of its blockade continues amid heightened US-Iran confrontation, neutral-flagged vessels with multinational crews — particularly those with large Indian contingents — find themselves increasingly exposed.
For now, Indian authorities are prioritising the welfare of their citizens while navigating delicate diplomacy. As Minister Sonowal described the loss as a “profound loss to our maritime family”, the government’s message is one of vigilance at sea and firmness in international channels: Indian lives in international waters must be protected, even as great-power rivalries reshape the region.
Repatriation efforts continue, with Indian missions coordinating closely with Omani partners and ship owners. Yet the broader question lingers for global shipping and for India’s seafaring communities: in an era of renewed great-power friction, how many more innocent crews will be caught in the crossfire?
