Fifteen of the victims were seafarers. Separately, five Indians have been killed in attacks on commercial shipping in the Black Sea, and two remain missing.

New Delhi: India has now lost 23 of its nationals in the ongoing West Asia conflict, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Tuesday, and the toll has been climbing. Fifteen of those who died were seafarers.

The figure was shared by MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal at the ministry’s regular briefing in New Delhi. It is one higher than the toll the ministry gave less than a week earlier, when it put the number at 22, including 14 seafarers.

The latest death

The newest victim died on Monday evening, when a commercial vessel was attacked near Limah on the coast of Oman. The ship, the Indian-flagged MSV Al Jusufi, had 14 Indian crew members on board. One of them was killed. The other 13 were rescued by Omani authorities.

The man who died has been identified as Gandhar Nahim Ajij, a seafarer from Gujarat.

Jaiswal thanked the Omani authorities for responding so quickly and said arrangements were being made to bring the 13 survivors home. The government is also working to repatriate Ajij’s mortal remains. No details were shared about who carried out the attack, and the ministry did not say whether the cause had been established.

India’s response

In its statement, the MEA condemned the attack and said that the targeting of commercial vessels and civilian infrastructure in the region must stop. It called for the restoration of free and unimpeded navigation through international waterways, in line with international law, “at the earliest.”

The ministry also repeated India’s call for dialogue and diplomacy, and urged an immediate de-escalation of tensions and an early conclusion to the diplomatic negotiations currently under way. The message was a familiar one, but it came with an unusually blunt reminder that Indian crews are paying the price on the water.

Black Sea losses

Asked about attacks on shipping elsewhere, Jaiswal said five Indian nationals have been killed in strikes on commercial vessels in the Black Sea region, and two others are still missing. These deaths are counted separately from the West Asia toll of 23.

Why seafarers are bearing the brunt

India supplies one of the world’s largest pools of merchant sailors, and many of them work on ships that carry cargo and energy through the Gulf, the Gulf of Oman and neighbouring waters. When commercial shipping becomes a target, Indian crews are often among the first exposed. Of the 23 Indians killed in the West Asia conflict, more than half have been seafarers, which says a lot about where the risk now sits.

The conflict has also put pressure on the wider economy. Disruption to Gulf shipping has complicated India’s energy supplies, and the country has been looking at other suppliers to cover the gap. The human toll, however, is what the ministry chose to stress this week.

What to watch

Three things are worth following. The first is the safe return of the 13 rescued crew members and the repatriation of Ajij’s remains. The second is whether the two Indians missing in the Black Sea are found. The third is whether the ministry issues new advisories to Indian seafarers or shipping companies about operating in the region. At the time of writing, no new advisory had been announced.
 

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