India deploys guided missile destroyer after vessel hit

Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has stated that his country would take “serious measures” following an attack on one of its ships by a drone in the Arabian Sea.

During the launch ceremony of the Indian Navy’s guided missile destroyer INS Imphal yesterday, Singh announced that India takes the attack “very seriously.”

He emphasised that India would find those behind the attack, even if they were at the bottom of the sea and serious measures would be taken against them.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that a ship was attacked by a drone on 23 December, around 370 kilometres southwest of the city of Veraval on the Arabian Sea.

An explosion occurred on the ship after the attack, but no casualties were reported.

Following the attack on the ship MV Chem Pluto, which was carrying ethylene dichloride from Saudi Arabia to the Indian state of Karnataka, the Indian Navy announced the deployment of three warships in the Arabian Sea.

“Further forensic and technical analysis will be required to establish the vector of attack, including type and amount of explosive used,” the Indian Navy said in a statement.A spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Monday called a US claim that Tehran had attacked the ship near India “baseless”.

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