Iran fired heavily on Indian tankers, yet ‘Desh Garima’ came out safely from Hormuz.

An Indian-flagged oil tanker successfully transited the vital waterway amid Iran’s re-closure of the Strait of Hormuz, while at least four ships turned back. According to ships monitoring data, the oil tanker named ‘Desh Garima’ crossed Hormuz on Saturday (April 18, 2026).

This tanker of Shipping Corporation of India Limited (SCI) is the 10th Indian flag ship to transit this route since the beginning of March. According to ‘MarineTraffic’, till Saturday evening this tanker was moving in the Gulf of Oman. The data also revealed that oil tankers ‘Sanmar Herald’, ‘Desh Vaibhav’ and ‘Desh Vibhor’ as well as cargo vessel ‘Jag Arnav’ changed course after firing from Iran..

14 Indian ships stranded in the Persian Gulf

With this, the number of Indian flagged ships in the Persian Gulf has increased to 14. Government-owned SCI handles ‘Desh Vaibhav’ and ‘Desh Vibhor’, while ‘Sanmar Herald’ is operated by Sanmar Shipping and ‘Jag Arnav’ is operated by Great Eastern Shipping Company.

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According to ‘United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations’, a tanker reported that two boats of Iran’s ‘Revolutionary Guard Corps’ were fired upon about 20 nautical miles north-east of Oman. It is believed that due to this reason the Indian ships changed their route. According to ‘TankerTrackers.com’, two Indian-flagged ships, including a supertanker loaded with Iraqi crude oil, had to return after the firing.

India summoned Iranian ambassador

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) summoned the Iranian Ambassador to India regarding the firing on Indian ships in Hormuz. During this, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri expressed deep concern over the firing by Iran’s IRGC gunboats on two Indian ships. However, the tanker and crew are said to be safe.

What else did the Foreign Ministry tell in this matter?

He underlined the importance India attaches to the safety of merchant ships and seafarers and reminded that Iran had previously provided safe passage to many ships visiting India, the MEA said in the statement. Reiterating his concern over this serious incident of firing on merchant ships, the Foreign Secretary urged the Ambassador to convey India’s position to the Iranian authorities and to resume the process of facilitating navigation of ships to India from Hormuz as soon as possible. According to the Foreign Ministry, the Iranian ambassador has pledged to convey these views to Iranian officials.

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