The drone that hit the chemical tanker off Porbandar coast in Gujarat in the Arabian Sea on Saturday was fired from Iran, the Pentagon has said.
A statement by the U.S. Department of Defense read: "The motor vessel CHEM PLUTO, a Liberia-flagged, Japanese-owned, and Netherlands-operated chemical tanker was struck at approximately 10 a.m. local time (6 a.m. GMT) today in the Indian Ocean, 200 nautical miles from the coast of India, by a one-way attack drone fired from Iran," a Pentagon spokesperson told Reuters.
The statement added that the US military "remains in communication with the vessel as it continues toward a destination in India". The Pentagon statement said this was the "seventh Iranian attack on commercial shipping since 2021."
This is also the first time that the Pentagon openly accused Iran of directly targeting ships since the start of Israel's war on Hamas.
The British maritime agency said on Saturday that the fire on the Liberian-flagged chemical products tanker was extinguished without crew casualties. "Some structural damage was also reported and some water was taken onboard. The vessel was Israel-affiliated. She had last called Saudi Arabia and was destined for India at the time," the firm said on its website.
The ship was on its way to New Mangalore from Saudi Arabia. Indian Coast Guard Ship Vikram, on Exclusive Economic Zone patrol, was diverted to the site. The Indian Navy has also deployed a P-8I long-range maritime surveillance aircraft to ascertain the safety of the vessel.
The Indian Coast Guard said the vessel has started making its way towards Mumbai post undertaking damage assessment and repairs on its power generation systems. "The Coast Guard Dornier aircraft has sanitised the area and established communication with Chem Pluto. The vessel has started making way towards Mumbai post undertaking damage assessment and repairs on its power generation systems," it said.
DRONE ATTACK ON MV CHEM PLUTO-Indian Coast Guard Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre,Mumbai received information regarding fire onboard MV Chem Pluto. The Merchant ship with 20 Indian &01 Vietnamese Crew was reportedly attacked by a suspected drone strike on aerial platform.(1/6) pic.twitter.com/CpioW9MfT9
— Indian Coast Guard (@IndiaCoastGuard) December 23, 2023
"The vessel is likely to enter Mumbai and sought 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," it said in a late-night statement.
Iran yet to respond
Iran has not responded to the accusations levelled against it by the Pentagon. But, regarding the attacks on Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea, Tehran said that "the resistance [Houthis] has its own tools… and acts in accordance with its own decisions and capabilities."
Iran’s deputy foreign minister Ali Bagheri told Mehr news agency that the "fact that certain powers, such as the Americans and the Israelis, suffer strikes from the resistance movement… should in no way call into question the reality of the strength of the resistance in the region."
Tehran has said it supports the Houthis politically but denies sending the group weapons.
