All 20 Indian crew rescued after a US strike on the tanker MT Jalveer off Oman
The attack on a Guinea-Bissau-flagged tanker was the third in four days in the Gulf. On the same day, the ports minister confirmed three Indian seafarers had died aboard MT Settebello.
By Marcus Oyelaran · World Editor, World
The short version
- All 20 Indian seafarers aboard MT Jalveer were evacuated and brought ashore at Shinas port.
- US Central Command said a US aircraft fired two Hellfire missiles into the engine room.
- Three Indian seafarers from MT Settebello were confirmed dead the same day; 21 of the 24 aboard had been rescued.
All 20 Indian seafarers aboard the Guinea-Bissau-flagged tanker MT Jalveer were safely evacuated after the vessel was struck by a US military aircraft near the Oman coast on June 11, 2026. The Indian Embassy in Muscat said the evacuation to Shinas port had been coordinated with the assistance of the Royal Navy of Oman.
It was the third such incident in the area in four days. US Central Command said the tanker had attempted to transport oil from Iran through the Gulf of Oman, and that a US aircraft fired two Hellfire missiles into the ship's engine room after the crew repeatedly failed to comply with directions from US forces. It was not the first time the tanker had been fired on: CENTCOM said MT Jalveer received warning shots about 30 nautical miles off the Oman coast on May 15 and was directed to turn back into the Gulf of Oman. Earlier in the same week, US aircraft disabled the Palau-flagged MT Marivex and MT Settebello, the latter on the Tuesday.
The same day, three deaths were confirmed
On the day of the Jalveer strike, Sarbananda Sonowal, the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, confirmed the death of three Indian seafarers who had been reported missing a day earlier from MT Settebello. Of the 24 Indians aboard that vessel, 21 had been rescued. The Ministry of External Affairs had summoned the American charge d'affaires in New Delhi late the previous night to register a protest over the Settebello attack.
We have conveyed our deepest concerns on these incidents and the string of attacks happening. And we hope and expect that these would end, these would come to an immediate halt.
- MT Jalveer: 20 Indian crew evacuated and brought ashore at Shinas.
- Attack: two Hellfire missiles fired into the engine room, per US Central Command.
- Flag: Guinea-Bissau.
- MT Settebello: 24 Indians aboard, 21 rescued, 3 confirmed dead.
The two incidents together define the exposure that Indian merchant seafarers carry through this part of the Gulf. Both vessels were foreign-flagged and both were carrying, or trying to carry, Iranian cargo, which is what US Central Command identified as the reason for disabling them. The crew on MT Jalveer survived; the three on MT Settebello did not. Nothing in the two events suggests the difference was one of nationality.
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About the byline
Marcus Oyelaran
Edits the world desk. Previously reported across Africa and the Gulf.
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