2024-01-03 02:22 PM IST
US Dept of Defense made a shocking claim and held Iran responsible for the India drone strike on the India-bound merchant vessel. Further, the Pentagon statement also claimed that it was the “seventh Iranian attack on commercial shipping since 2021”. A suspected drone attacked an India-bound ship in the Arabian Sea near Gujarat coast on December 23. MV Chem Pluto, a merchant ship, commenced its voyage from UAE on Dec 19 and was expected to reach New Mangalore port on Dec 25. Soon after getting hit, the merchant vessel immediately caught fire; however, no casualties have been reported so far. Notably, 20 Indians were onboard the ship during the incident that took place 217 nautical miles off the Porbandar coast. Reacting sharply to it, the Indian Navy and ICG didn’t waste any time and charged towards the MV Chem Pluto for assistance. The vessel is likely to enter Mumbai and seek escort assistance due to steering issues. Indian Coast Guard Ship Vikram will be escorting the ship during its passage. The Indian Coast Guard Operations Centre is monitoring the situation closely.
