A Palau-flagged oil tanker with 15 Indian crew members was attacked off the coast of Oman, resulting in injuries. The incident occurred amidst rising tensions in the Middle East following attacks between Iran, the US, and Israel.
Two India-bound LPG tankers have crossed the Strait of Hormuz amid heightened tensions in the region, while an India-flagged vessel sank after being hit near the strategic shipping corridor.
If the oil infrastructure is attacked by the United States, the whole area could be flooded with oil, spilling into the Persian Gulf.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday announced that France and the United Kingdom will jointly lead a multinational initiative to restore free and secure navigation in the Strait of Hormuz amid uncertainty over the virtual control of the strategic waterway between the US and Iran.
An Indian-flagged crude oil tanker, Jag Laadki, safely sailed from the UAE's Fujairah port despite an attack on the terminal and is scheduled to reach India. The Indian government is working to ensure the safe passage of remaining Indian-flagged vessels in the region.
Conflicting reports emerge regarding the effectiveness of the US blockade on Iranian ports, with Iran claiming successful transit of vessels and the US asserting complete maritime dominance.
The US blockade on Iranian ports is aimed to curb Iranian energy exports, thereby crippling its economy to force Iran back to the negotiating table, points out Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Ahead of the expiry on Tuesday of the two-week ceasefire declared by US President Donald Trump in the conflict with Iran, US media outlets reported on Sunday that negotiators Steve Witkoff, special envoy for peace missions and Jared Kushner will head to Islamabad for talks with Iran.
When everyone has footage and no one can verify it, the loudest voice wins, notes Prem Panicker who begins a daily blog on the War in the Middle East.
24 Indian-flagged vessels with 677 Indian seafarers were currently located west of the Strait of Hormuz, and four vessels with 101 Indian seafarers were stationed east of the strategic waterway.
An Indian-flagged LPG vessel successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz, reducing the number of Indian ships stranded in the Persian Gulf. India is in talks with Iran to ensure safe passage for its tankers, and Indian refiners continue to purchase crude oil and LPG from Iran despite regional tensions.
India should not stay on the margins of this initiative. There should be a serious debate about what would be in India's best interests asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
'Neither do the Israelis. The two attacking parties have very little economic interest in Hormuz.'
'Even if the war ends tomorrow, which is unlikely, and we go back to the pre-war status quo, the world will still need some time to get over the sudden shock of oil price increases.'
IRGC said vessels seeking to sail through the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz must obtain Iran's approval; otherwise, they could become targets of Iranian attacks.
The tanker reportedly switched off its Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponder while navigating the high-risk stretch of the strait and reappeared on tracking systems on March 9.
The vessel sank on March 4, 2026, approximately 20 nautical miles west of Galle, after reportedly being struck by a torpedo from a United States submarine.
The ceasefire is still technically holding, to the extent that no overt hostilities have been reported yet, but the rhetoric has hardened dangerously. The week ahead will also clarify whether the Islamabad failure was a negotiating tactic or whether Washington has genuinely locked itself into a position from which the only exits are climb-down, escalation, or the slow bleed of a new status quo that nobody chose and nobody controls. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Amid escalating tensions, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh declares Iran's unwavering commitment to a 'heroic nationalist defence' against perceived American and Israeli aggression, vowing to resist what he calls an 'invasion' to the very end.
Iran is fighting a different war: Older, slower, and in some ways more dangerous. Iran doesn't need to shoot down an F/A-18. It only needs to make the Strait of Hormuz feel dangerous long enough for insurance markets, shipping companies, and oil futures traders to do the rest. Prem Panicker continues his must-read daily blog on the war in the Middle East.
'We are getting used to the constant alerts to take shelter, listening to sonic booms from jets flying above us, hearing news of neighbouring ports being targeted, and being the only ship in the terminal.'
Fight on toward goals that keep receding, or exit with most objectives unmet. Trump is agitated, his poll numbers falling below the Plimsoll line, his base fractured between those who back the war and those who remember that he campaigned on ending them.
'Countries like Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and the Philippines have a 50 per cent increase in bookings.'
"We have just kept skeleton staff at the plant and rest have been sent home," Deepak G Inamdar, a senior engineer at the plant had told Gulf News over phone from Sur on Wednesday.
The death toll included over 450 from intense heat wave last summer, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
US strikes on Iran's three main nuclear facilities have once again raised concerns that Tehran might shut down the Strait of Hormuz - one of the world's most critical chokepoints, through which a fifth of global oil and gas supply flows.
This would be the second cyclonic storm in the Arabian Sea this year.
Bharat Petroleum Corporation lans to invest around Rs 6,000 crore (Rs 60 billion) in the exploration and production business over the next few years.
A deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm, named Remal, on Saturday evening and is likely to turn severe before making landfall between the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh on Sunday midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
It will also be the third cyclone to hit the western state in June since 1965, the meteorological office said.
On June 2, wind speed will reach 40-50 kmph gusting to 60 over south Gujarat coast, with sea condition very likely to be "rough to very rough". On June 3-4, squally wind speed will reach 90-100 kmph gusting 110 kmph over Gujarat coasts, and the sea condition is very likely to be high to very high.
Mumbai and certain adjoining areas experienced pre-monsoon showers, sources said on Sunday.
"Independence means if government has done something wrong, you say it's wrong. But at the same time, you should have courage when the government is doing the right thing every day. You have to also say that," he Gautam Adani was quoted as saying by FT.
A low-pressure area, set to form over east central Bay of Bengal on May 22, is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm and strike the Odisha-West Bengal coast on May 26, the Met department said on Thursday, sparking fears of another Amphan-like catastrophe.
Rain or thundershowers have also been predicted in south interior Karnataka and at a few places over Coastal Karnataka and North interior Karnataka.
It is the first visit to India by a senior minister of a member nation of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation after the controversial remarks triggered anguish in the Arab world.
Cyclone 'Biparjoy', the first storm brewing in the Arabian Sea this year, has rapidly intensified into a severe cyclonic storm, with meteorologists predicting a 'mild' monsoon onset over Kerala and 'weak' progress beyond southern peninsular under its influence.
The IMD, in its onset date forecast on May 15, had said the monsoon is likely to hit the southern state on June 5, four days after its normal arrival.
A state of emergency has been declared in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held wide-ranging talks with his visiting Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Wednesday against the backdrop of widespread anger in West Asia over controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammed made by two former Bharatiya Janata Party spokespersons.
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