Watch: Indian seafarers take cover as vessel attacked in Hormuz back in April

On April 22, the Federation of Seafarers and Indian Seafarers Union (FSUI) released video footage depicting a vessel carrying 22 crew members, 21 of whom were Indian, coming under attack in the Strait of Hormuz. The video captured small boats surrounding the ship, an RPG being fired, and seafarers quickly retreating to the ship's alleyways to seek safety.

The FSUI clarified that these attackers were not pirates, but rather naval forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as highlighted in a post on X. The footage served to emphasize the dangers faced by seafarers in the Strait of Hormuz, arguing that advisories and guidelines were insufficient to guarantee their safety.

Indian seafarers continue to operate in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reporting that 166 Indian seafarers remain in the region. Of these, 125 are aboard six Indian-flagged vessels, while 41 are working on foreign-flagged ships. The MEA also stated that the repatriation of Indian seafarers from the Gulf region reached a significant milestone on August 4, with 3,972 Indian seafarers successfully brought back home.

India ranks as the second-largest supplier of seafarers worldwide, with 311,936 personnel accounting for 12.16% of the global maritime workforce, according to the BIMCO-ICS Seafarer Workforce Report 2026. Indian officers constitute 13.41% of the global officer workforce, and 171,218 Indian ratings make up 11.29% of the global ratings workforce.

Despite the large presence of Indian seafarers in the region, casualties have occurred since the Iran war began, with the MEA reporting that Indian seafarers have experienced the highest number of fatalities among all nationalities in attacks on commercial shipping.