Dubai | An Indian national was killed on Monday when an explosive-laden drone boat struck an oil tanker off the coast of Muscat Governorate, according to officials.
In a statement, Oman's Ministry of Defence said that the Maritime Security Centre reported that the oil tanker MKD VYOM was hit by an unmanned boat 52 nautical miles off the coast of Muscat Governorate.
It said that the attack resulted in a fire and explosion in the engine room and the death of one crew member. The remaining 21 crew members were evacuated.
The Embassy of India in Oman expressed its "deepest condolences" on the tragic demise of the Indian crew member on board MKD Vyom.
The mission said it is in close coordination with local authorities in Oman to facilitate the safe and early repatriation of our nationals on board the vessel. "We remain committed to extending all possible assistance in this matter," it said.
State-run Oman News Agency reported that the attack triggered a fire and explosion within the main engine room, resulting in the fatality of one crew member of Indian nationality.
In coordination with the Maritime Security Centre, the tanker's complement of 21 crew members -- 16 Indian nationals, four Bangladeshi nationals, and one Ukrainian national -- was evacuated via the commercial vessel MV SAND, which flies the flag of the Republic of Panama, it said.
A vessel from the Royal Navy of Oman is monitoring the condition of the stricken tanker and issuing the necessary navigational warnings to vessels transiting the same maritime zone, it added.
The tanker, flagged to the Republic of the Marshall Islands, was carrying an estimated 59,463 metric tons of cargo.
A day earlier, another oil tanker came under attack in the Strait of Hormuz. The attack on the MV Skylight injured four crew members.
The state-run Oman News Agency said the crew were from India and Iran.
On Monday, the Indian mission in Oman said it was in constant touch with local authorities who are carrying out search operations for missing crew members following the incident involving MV Skylight.
It is learnt that out of the two missing crew members, one is an Indian national.
"We are also coordinating with officials in Oman for the repatriation of the crew members who have been rescued from MV Skylight and will continue to render all possible assistance in the matter," the Embassy of India in Oman said in a post on X.
The Strait of Hormuz is located between Oman and Iran and connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. It is one of the world's most important oil chokepoints.
Thiruvananthapuram | In view of the prevailing tensions across the West Asian region, the NORKA Roots has constituted special coordination groups in various Gulf countries to ensure assistance to expatriate Keralites and Malayali travellers abroad.
An assessment meeting chaired by NORKA Roots Resident Vice Chairman P Sreeramakrishnan here reviewed the current situation of expatriate Keralites and the inputs received through help desks, according to an official statement on Monday.
Norka Roots is the state government agency responsible for the affairs of Non-Resident Keralites (NRKs).
NORKA Department Secretary T V Anupama, NORKA Roots Chief Executive Officer Ajith Kolassery, officials of the department, representatives of the Loka Kerala Sabha and NORKA staff attended the meeting, it said.
Country-specific regional vigilance coordination teams have been formed in conflict-affected areas. In addition, NORKA collectives have been constituted to extend timely assistance to those in need.
These groups comprise officials from the NORKA Department, NORKA Roots, members of the Loka Kerala Sabha in respective countries, embassy volunteers, representatives of NORKA-recognised expatriate organisations, social workers and prominent community members, it said.
The coordination mechanism covers the countries including Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman.
A total of 102 people contacted the NORKA helpdesk and emergency assistance was provided where required, as per the statement.
As many as 54 enquiries were received from Qatar relating to security concerns, travel restrictions, visa issues, accommodation, food and medicines. All cases have been documented and are being monitored, and urgent matters have been addressed, the officials said.
The helpdesk also received 51 calls from Bahrain, 12 from Kuwait, five from Oman, four from Saudi Arabia and two from the UK, mostly pertaining to general enquiries.
To provide counselling services to those in distress, including callers to the NORKA help desk, counsellors have been deployed by the National Health Mission (Kerala), they said.
Expatriate Keralites and their family members may contact +91-471-2430001 or the toll-free number 14416 (within India) round the clock for tele-counselling services. The counselling facility was arranged at the request of NORKA.
In addition to the 24-hour NORKA Roots helpdesk, a control room has been set up at the NORKA Centre, functioning daily till 10 pm.
The control room will facilitate coordination with the Central and state governments, the Ministry of External Affairs and Indian missions abroad.
Meanwhile, the NORKA officials said the Keralite passengers stranded at the Karachi International Airport after flight diversions reached Colombo this afternoon.
They are scheduled to depart for New Delhi by a Sri Lankan Airlines flight at 12.30 am on March 3 and will subsequently travel to Kochi by an Air India flight early Tuesday morning, the statement added.