New Delhi, Oct. 8 -- New Delhi, Conflicts in West Asia and the Persian Gulf region have claimed the lives of 11 Indian seafarers, Shipping Secretary Vijay Kumar said on Thursday.
Addressing a press conference here, Kumar said that the Indian government has repatriated 4,232 Indian seafarers safely from the Strait of Hormuz area.
Missile attacks on vessels have become rampant in parts of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf area since the start of the US-Iran war on February 28, when the US and Israel attacked Iran, killing the country's supreme Leader Ayatollah Syed Ali Khamenei and several top commanders.
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow choke point in West Asia, is a crucial shipping route that connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
A senior shipping ministry official further said that conflicts in Black Sea have claimed the lives of five Indian seafarers since February 28.
The official further said that since February 28, 74 vessels of Indian interest have transited through the Strait of Hormuz, out of which 25 were Indian-flagged and the rest were foreign-flagged.
He also said that at present, eight Indian-flagged ships are in the Strait of Hormuz area, of which six are safely trading in that area, and two are container vessels.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.