Iran Grants Permission for Indian Authorities to Meet Crew of Seized Vessel

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has confirmed that Indian authorities will be permitted to meet the 17 Indian crew members of a cargo vessel affiliated with Israel. The vessel was seized by Iranian commandos in the Gulf of Hormuz over the weekend.

During a phone call on Sunday evening with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, Amir-Abdollahian provided this assurance, as per a statement from Iran's foreign ministry. The release of the Indian crew members of the cargo vessel MSC Aries was a topic of discussion during the call.

Amir-Abdollahian was quoted in the statement as saying, "We are tracking the details of the seized ship, and representatives of the Indian government will soon be able to meet with the ship's crew."

The statement also mentioned that Jaishankar "expressed his concern about the situation of the 17 Indian crew members on the ship seized by Iran" and sought Iran's assistance in this matter.

Indian authorities had stated a few hours after the vessel was seized by a special forces unit of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) approximately 80 km off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) that they were in contact with their Iranian counterparts to ensure the safety and prompt release of the 17 Indian nationals among the ship's 25-member crew.

The crew of the Portuguese-flagged and Israel-affiliated cargo vessel includes the master and 17 Indians, along with four Filipinos, two Pakistanis, one Russian, and one Estonian.

The Italian-Swiss shipping group MSC has stated that it is "working closely with the relevant authorities" to ensure the crew's wellbeing. The ship is linked to London-based Zodiac Maritime, a part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer's Zodiac Group.

Since the onset of the Israel-Hamas conflict, India has taken several measures to safeguard ships with Indian crew members that were targeted by Iran's proxy forces, such as the Houthi rebels of Yemen.

On Friday, India issued an advisory urging its citizens to avoid travel to Iran or Israel due to escalating tensions between the two nations. It also advised all Indian nationals residing in the two countries to exercise "utmost precautions".