An unladen oil tanker carrying 24 Indian crew members caught fire near Oman on Monday afternoon. A shipping ministry official confirmed that all Indian seafarers are safe and have been evacuated with assistance from Omani authorities. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
Ship Blacklisted by US
According to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, the Palau-flagged vessel MT MARIVEX is blacklisted by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and is not owned by India. The ship was reportedly 'disabled' while attempting to evade the US blockade.
Opesh Kumar Sharma, a director in the shipping ministry, stated that the ship was well outside the Strait of Hormuz when the fire broke out. Sources indicated that over the past several days, the vessel made four attempts to evade the US blockade. On three occasions, it turned away after repeated warnings from the US Navy.
Attempt to Use Omani Waters
On June 8, the ship made another attempt to bypass the blockade by entering Omani territorial waters. It switched off its signal devices to avoid detection. 'This pattern makes it clear that its intention was not above board. The ship was in an unladen state when it was disabled,' a source said.
The Indian embassy in Muscat posted on X: 'We are thankful to the Omani authorities for their swift response and rescue of all the 24 crew members of Indian nationality, onboard MT Marivex, and ensuring their safety.'
Responding to questions, Sharma said, 'Whether the ship was hit by a projectile or not, presently we are trying to get information on that. As you are aware, the fire incident occurred at 1:30 today (Monday)... We are in touch with the owners, and we are trying to ascertain the facts. We are also in touch with external affairs ministry and our mission in Oman.'
