13 Indians And 3 Sri-Lankans Missing After Oil Tanker Capsizes Off Oman Coast (representational image)
13 Indians who were on board of a Comoros-flagged oil vessel that capsized off Oman are missing. The sinking was reported by the country’s maritime security centre. The centre in Oman said the crew of “Prestige Falcon” comprised 13 Indian nationals and three Sri Lankans.
It told Reuters that the vessel remains “submerged, inverted”. However, it did not confirm if the vessel had stabilised or whether oil or oil products were leaking into the sea.
As per marinetraffic.com, a shipping website, the vessel departed from the port of Hamriya, in Dubai and was heading for the Yemeni port city of Aden. Location of the ship was updated four days ago. It was a 117-metre long oil products tanker built in 2007.
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The Omani authorities started a search and rescue operation at the scene in coordination with maritime officials, said Oman’s state news agency as quoted by Reuters.
The port of Duqm, which is situated on Oman’s southwest coast, is near the sultanate’s significant oil and gas extraction sites. It includes major oil refinery that is part of Duqm’s extensive industrial zone, the largest economic project in Oman.
In a separate incident, one Indian citizen dies and another injured during a shooting near a Shia mosque in Muscat, said the Indian Embassy. The incident happened on Monday.
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Nine individuals, including the three attackers were killed in the assault. As many as 28 people, including security personnel, were also injured in the incident. Four Pakistani nationals were also among those killed, as reported by Reuters.
The attack came as the Shia Muslims observed Ashura, an annual period of mourning to commemorate the 7th-century death of Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Mohammad.
The Sunni Muslim jihadist group Islamic State (IS) says three of its members were involved in the attack, said BBC.
