The tanker "Petro Dolphin" (MT Petro Dolphin) was hit by a drone attack on Sunday, 11 October 2026, at the anchorage of Sohar port in northern Oman. According to Sarbananda Sonowal, India's shipping minister, nine of the tanker's 11 Indian sailors have been rescued and two remain missing.
According to Arab News, citing AFP, India's shipping minister wrote on X that search and rescue operations led by local authorities and the Omani coast guard are continuing to find the two missing sailors, and that New Delhi is in contact with the relevant bodies. By the time this report was published, no group or government had claimed responsibility for the attack on the Petro Dolphin, and Omani officials had not commented on who was behind it.
The second attack on ships in one day
The attack on the Petro Dolphin came on the same day that the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker "Valtra" was hit by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz and caught fire; according to India's shipping minister, its 11 Indian sailors are safe. DIAR had earlier reported on an outbound tanker in the Strait of Hormuz being hit by an unidentified projectile. On Saturday, 10 October, the Panama-flagged tanker "Jam No. 2" was also hit by a drone attack at the anchorage of Sharjah in the UAE, and its 22 Indian crew members were unharmed.
Mizan news agency, affiliated with the Islamic Republic's judiciary, claimed on Sunday, citing the public relations office of the IRGC Navy, that a "second supertanker" had struck a sea mine in the Strait of Hormuz; this even though the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) had earlier reported projectiles striking tankers in the waterway. The IRGC has also warned ships that pass through the Strait of Hormuz without its permission.
Indian sailors and insecure shipping in the Persian Gulf
India's shipping ministry called the successive attacks on ships in the region "a matter of deep concern". According to AFP, several Indian sailors have lost their lives in attacks on ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz since US and Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic began on 28 February 2026. With more than 320,000 active seafarers, India is one of the world's largest suppliers of crew for merchant ships.
The IRGC had earlier claimed responsibility for the attack on the LPG carrier NV Sunshine and threatened to extend its attacks on ships beyond the Strait of Hormuz. The new attacks at anchorages in Oman and the UAE, whose perpetrators have not yet been officially identified, came after that threat. Meanwhile, the United States is continuing its naval blockade of the Islamic Republic.
The drone attack on the Petro Dolphin at the Sohar anchorage shows that insecurity for shipping has spread from the Strait of Hormuz to Oman's ports.
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