India, April 24 -- A Panama-flagged container ship that was fired upon by Iranian boats amid an escalation of tensions in the Strait of Hormuz had 21 Indian crew members, who are unharmed and safe, India's shipping ministry said on Thursday, even as another container vessel headed to India after transiting the waterway.

The Euphoria is one of three ships that were attacked by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Wednesday as Tehran pushed back against a US blockade of its shipping, seeking to reassert its control of the strait that is normally the route for a fifth of global oil supplies. The other ships attacked were the Panama-flagged MSC Francesca and the Liberian-registered Epaminondas - which was headed to the Mundra port...