The Indian Navy rescued an Iranian-flagged fishing vessel with 19 Pakistani crew members and a Sri Lankan trawler in two swift operations after armed pirates hijacked the boats in the Arabian Sea amid deteriorating security situation arising out of Iran-backed Houthi rebels targeting various cargo ships in the region.
Sixteen fishermen of Rameswaram and their four boats were detained on Monday allegedly by Sri Lankan naval personnel when they were fishing near the islet of Katchatheevu.
The seven, part of groups of fishermen who put out to sea from Rameswaram in TN, have been taken to Talaimannar in northern Sri Lanka.
Fifty-three fishermen, including 30 from Rameshwaram, were arrested by the Sri Lankan naval personnel off Talaimannar and Jaffna early Thursday morning, Fisheries Association officials said.
Twelve fishermen were attacked allegedly by Sri Lankan Naval personnel in two separate incidents when they were fishing off the Tamil Nadu coast, officials said.
For India, China's Indian Ocean power projection, maritime domain awareness, dual-use ports, underwater surveillance, antisubmarinewarfare, naval exercises with Pakistan, pose considerable pressure, depleted India's strategic depth and marginalises Indian role, points out Srikanth Kondapalli.
The naval personnel in five boats surrounded the boats of the fishermen and pelted stones at them, forcing them to leave the area without fishing on Wednesday night, the sources said.
The officials said the naval personnel in eight patrol boats intercepted about 200 fishermen in 130 boats off Katchathivu (an island ceded to Sri Lanka by India in 1974), assaulted them and took away their catch, their Global Positioning systems and batteries on Saturday night.
A group of fishermen from Tamil Nadu were on Tuesday allegedly attacked by Sri Lankan naval men while they were fishing near Katchatheevu, fisheries department officials said. The fishermen from this coastal area had ventured for fishing in 20 boats, officials said, adding, the Lankan naval men allegedly attacked them with ropes and steel pipes causing extensive damage to their fishing nets and communication equipment.
Four fishermen were injured on Thursday when they were attacked, allegedly by Sri Lankan naval personnel, while they were fishing near Katchatheevu in the Palk Straits. Sticks, bottles and stones were allegedly hurled by the Lankan naval personnel at the fishermen and their boats also suffered damage in the attack.
The Lankan naval personnel cut fishing nets of about 70 boats and pelted stones and bottles forcing more than 2,000 fishermen to flee and return to the shore on Thursday morning.
Eight fishermen of Sri nearby coastal Vedaranyam village were injured when they were allegedly attacked by Lankan naval personnel in mid-sea off Arukattuthurai in Tamil Nadu on Sunday morning, officials said.
Five fishermen were injured when they were attacked allegedly by Sri Lankan naval personnel near Katchathivu islet near the island nation. They were part of a group of 2,788 fishermen who had gone out to sea in 697 boats yesterday, fisheries department officials said.
Thirty Indian fishermen were injured when they were attacked at mid-sea off Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu, allegedly by Sri Lankan naval personnel, and their catch was taken away. Fisheries department officials said three Sri Lankan naval boats surrounded the fishermen while they were fishing in mid-sea on Monday night and beat them up, injuring 30 of them, besides damaging their boats by throwing stones.
An Indian Navy ship on a patrol turned out to be the saviour of a large group of fishermen from here when they were allegedly being chased by Sri Lankan naval men close to the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL), fisheries officials said in Rameshwaram.
The arrest came as the group was departing Point Pedro in the northern Jaffna peninsula, Naval spokesman Commander Kosala Warnakulasuriya said, adding that among the arrested, 38 were men, 28 women and 14 children.
The fishermen had not ventured into the sea for the past one week in protest against levying of tax on prawn import by the United States.
Sri Lankan Navy on Wednesday intercepted a boat carrying 97 Tamil-origin Lankans, including 40 children, believed to be on their way to Australia illegally.
Sri Lanka's President Anura Kumara Dissanayake announced that the country refused permission for the US to land two warplanes at Mattala International Airport, citing a commitment to neutrality amidst rising tensions in the Middle East.
In yet another attack, an Indian fisherman was on Thursday injured when Sri Lankan naval personnel allegedly fired at some fishing boats off Kodiakarai coast, about 200 km from Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu, fisheries department officials said.
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) authorizes actor Vijay to decide on alliances for the upcoming Assembly elections and announces him as their Chief Ministerial candidate.
The Sri Lankan authorities will hand over the fishermen to the Indian consulate after which they will be repatriated to India after completing all the necessary COVID-19 protocols.
'India was not obliged to protect the Iranian ship.' 'Once the Iranian ship left Indian waters, she was on her own.' 'Guilt tripping India is wrong.'
In the second such incident this week, 8 Tamil Nadu fishermen were on Thursday injured and 13 boats damaged when Sri Lankan Naval personnel allegedly attacked them near the International Maritime Boundary Line near Katchatheevu, officials said.
Twelve fishermen were injured and 20 boats damaged when they were attacked allegedly by Sri Lankan naval personnel for fishing in their territorial waters.
India has expressed condolences over the death of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei following a joint US-Israel strike, amidst rising tensions in West Asia and criticism over the sinking of an Iranian warship.
Amid rising tensions, Iran threatens retaliation after the United States confirms sinking its warship, IRIS Dena, in international waters, escalating conflict in the region.
At least 34 Indian fishermen have been arrested and their boats seized by the Sri Lankan Navy for allegedly fishing in the country's waters, authorities in Colombo said on Tuesday.
Sixteen fishermen from Rameswaram were injured in an alleged mid-sea attack by Sri Lankan naval personnel while fishing near the International Maritime Boundary Line in Palk Strait, the police said on Sunday.
A Sri Lankan court on Tuesday ordered the release of 56 Indian fishermen who were detained for allegedly fishing in the island nation's territorial waters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump discussed the Middle East crisis, with a focus on the Strait of Hormuz.
Bringing the latest instance of the arrest of TN fishermen to the attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Stalin said 12 of them were arrested on Thursday and two mechanised fishing boats were seized by the Lankan Navy.
India has lodged strong protest with the Sri Lankan government over the recent incidents of firing by the island nation's navy on Indian fishermen, a senior Coast Guard official said on Monday.
Sri Lanka has released 14 Indian fishermen as a special gesture, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for resolving the issue with a "humane approach." The fishermen issue figured prominently during talks between Prime Minister Modi and Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Saturday. The fishermen issue is a contentious matter in India-Sri Lanka ties, with several alleged incidents of Sri Lankan Navy personnel using force against Indian fishermen in the Palk Strait. Modi stressed the need for a humane approach and the immediate release of the fishermen and their boats.
Actor-politician Vijay held his first public meeting in Puducherry, criticising the central government for neglecting the union territory's demand for statehood and praising the local government's impartiality. He also targeted the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, suggesting they could learn from Puducherry.
Six Tamil Nadu fishermen were injured on Tuesday when they were allegedly attacked by the Sri Lankan navy which briefly detained 13 others near Katchatheevu in the Palk Straits.
Over 5,000 fishermen from various hamlets in Nagapattinam district in Tamil Nadu on Thursday started an indefinite strike to protest the arrest of their fellow fishermen belonging to Akkaraipettai off Kodiakarai coast by the Sri Lankan Navy.
A day after Sri Lankan Navy released around 1,000 Tamil Nadu fishermen after detaining them for a day, thousands of fishermen from Rameshwaram launched an indefinite strike on Friday demanding protection and an end to recurring incidents of attacks by the island's navy.
Over 5,000 fishermen from various hamlets in the district on Thursday commenced on an indefinite strike protesting the arrest of their fellow fishermen belonging to Akkaraipettai off Kodiakarai coast by the Sri Lankan navy.
Tamil fishermen being attacked by the Sri Lankan navy has become a regular affair in Tamil Nadu. Most of these fishermen belong to two districts: Nagaipattinam and Ramanathapuram which includes the island of Rameswaram.
