Three Keralites among 24 Indians on US-bound oil tanker seized by Iranian Navy
Synopsis
Iranian state media broadcast footage of navy commandos landing on the deck of the Advantage Sweet, which Tehran claimed it had seized on Thursday following an apparent collision with one of its warships off the coast of Oman.
Dubai: The Iran Navy intercepted a US-bound oil tanker from the Gulf of Oman on Friday. The crew of the tanker was entirely Indians, including three from Kerala. They are Ernakulam natives Jismon Joseph (31) and Edwin Puthussery (26) and a Malappuram native Sam Soman.
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Iranian state media broadcast footage of navy commandos landing on the deck of the Advantage Sweet, which Tehran claimed it had seized on Thursday following an apparent accident with one of its warships off the coast of Oman.
The incident is the most recent of its kind in a waterway that is important for the world's energy supplies. It occurs at a time of increased tensions over Iran's nuclear development.
“We were in touch with Edwin till Wednesday evening. We chatted on WhatsApp for a long time,” said Alvin, his brother.
On Thursday, news of the tanker's capture was conveyed to the crew members' families. They were informed that the tanker had been completely taken over by Iranian Navy commandos and that no more information was available.
Initial reports said that there was just one Malayali person aboard the ship. Later, it was confirmed that the ship, which has 24 Indian crew members, contained three Keralites.
Iran claimed that the tanker had collided with one of their vessels, killing two Iranian crew members and leaving a number of others injured. The tanker, it claimed, did not reply when it tried to contact it to ask it to halt, which caused the seizure.
The US Navy demanded the ship's immediate release, slamming Iran's "continued harassment" in Gulf waters.
According to the spokesperson for Advantage Tankers, the vessel had taken oil from Kuwait and was chartered by Chevron Corp. It was bound for Houston, Texas, according to the MarineTraffic tracking website.
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