Deoria, UP: A seafarer from Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria district, aged 23, was killed in a missile attack on a commercial ship near the Strait of Hormuz near Oman’s eastern coast on Thursday.
Suraj Yadav, son of Om Prakash Yadav and a resident of Karmanjipur Ahirwati Tola village under the Gauri Bazar police station, had travelled to Oman on August 19 through a Mumbai-based company to work aboard a commercial vessel, his uncle Awadhesh Yadav said.
The ship was travelling from Oman to Bahrain when Suraj, a wiper, last spoke to his family. He had told them that the vessel would return to Oman after loading cargo.
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The Indian Embassy in Oman on X said the merchant vessel, MV Cape Dao, came under attack while transiting towards India on Wednesday.
Union Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said all surviving crew members, including the 19 Indian nationals, have been safely evacuated by the Royal Navy of Oman and are currently ashore.
“The government will ensure that the mortal remains of Suraj Yadav are brought home with full dignity, and every possible support is extended to his next of kin,” Sonowal said on X.
Suraj was the eldest of four brothers and was unmarried. His three younger brothers -- Sunny, a Class 10 student, Sahil, a Class 9 student, and Sameer, a Class 6 student -- live with their mother and grandfather in the village.
On Thursday, relatives, neighbours and villagers gathered at the family home to mourn Suraj's death.
The latest death comes months after another seafarer from Deoria, Shivanand Chaurasia, was killed in an attack on the Palau-flagged tanker Settebello off the Oman coast in June.
Twenty-four Indian crew members were aboard that vessel, of whom 21 were rescued. Chaurasia and two others were later confirmed dead.
Following attacks on merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz in July, the Centre reviewed the safety of Indian seafarers working in conflict-sensitive regions.
A high-level review chaired by Sonowal launched the 'Seafarer-First' initiative to protect Indian sailors in conflict zones like the Strait of Hormuz.
