12 Injured in Commercial Tanker Attack

Twelve sailors were injured after a commercial tanker was attacked while passing through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, the latest strike on the shipping route.

The Panama-flagged MT On Peace was transiting the strait when it was struck, according to India’s foreign ministry. The tanker was carrying a 19-member crew. Twelve crew members were injured, including 11 Indian nationals.

Omani authorities helped evacuate the wounded from the vessel. They were taken to Khasab, Oman, for medical treatment.

India condemned the attack and warned that continued violence against commercial vessels threatens regional stability and trade. “The continuing incidents of attacks on shipping in the region remain a cause of deep concern for India. We reiterate our call for an immediate cessation of such attacks in the interests of peace and stability in the region,” the Indian government said.

“The targeting of commercial shipping, seafarers and civilian infrastructure in the region must end, and navigation and commerce through international waterways must be restored at the earliest,” the statement continued.

The strait is one of the world’s main energy corridors and a passage for commercial vessels moving between the Persian Gulf and global markets. Shipping traffic there has faced repeated security threats as fighting and regional tensions spill into commercial lanes.

The latest strike left a dozen sailors wounded on a vessel trying to transit the waterway. Indian officials said no further details about the attackers, or about the condition of the ship and the rest of the crew, had been released in the initial account.