India on Tuesday summoned Iran's deputy envoy after one Indian national was killed as two UAE tankers were hit by Iran while transiting the southern shipping lane of the Strait of Hormuz in Omani territorial waters, according to media reports.
India's Ministry of External Affairs has taken a "firm diplomatic stance" following a deadly maritime incident in the Middle East, state-owned Doordarshan News reported.
Mohamed Javad Hosseini, Iran's deputy chief of mission in New Delhi, was summoned by the ministry, local broadcaster NDTV said.
Earlier on Tuesday, the UAE Defense Ministry said one crew member was killed and eight others were injured, including four seriously, after two United Arab Emirates tankers were struck by Iranian cruise missiles in Omani territorial waters.
The ministry identified the vessels as the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah, saying the deceased was an Indian crew member aboard the Mombasa. The injured included six Indian nationals and two Ukrainian nationals.
The incident came amid escalating military tensions after the US launched a third consecutive day of strikes on Iran, saying the operations were intended to weaken Tehran’s capabilities in the Strait of Hormuz, which has seen renewed conflict between the US and Iran.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said that the US military encouraged two supertankers to use an unauthorized route in the Strait of Hormuz before the vessels were hit and disabled, while it did not clarify how the tankers were struck or explicitly claim responsibility for the incident.
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