Shafaq News- New Delhi

India on Sunday reported that 13 of 14 Indian crew members aboard the commercial vessel MT El Gaia had been rescued after an attack off the coast of Oman, while search operations continued for one missing sailor.

The Indian Foreign Ministry said its embassy in Oman was coordinating with Omani authorities in the search and rescue operation, describing attacks on commercial shipping, seafarers, civilians, and civilian infrastructure as “unacceptable.”

The ministry did not identify who carried out the attack on MT El Gaia, which shipping records identify as a Panama-flagged oil tanker built in 2005.

Earlier today, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency said a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz had been struck by a projectile, causing a fire and forcing the crew to evacuate. Iranian state media separately reported that one person was killed and four crew members were wounded aboard an Iranian commercial vessel struck near Qeshm Island.

Iran is expected to meet Gulf states in Oman on September 14 to discuss the waterway and other “regional issues,” according to Reuters, although a senior Iranian official told the outlet that the talks were unlikely to produce a signed agreement reopening the strait.