Drone hit vessel not Indian flagged, says officials

New Delhi: A commercial oil tanker named MV Sai Baba that reportedly came under a drone attack in the Southern Red Sea is not an Indian-flagged vessel, Indian officials said on Sunday.

The clarification came after the US Central Command (CENTCOM) described the vessel as an Indian-flagged ship.

The officials said MV Sai Baba is a Gabon-flagged vessel and it had received a certification from the Indian register of shipping.

Vessels around the world can obtain the certification from registration authorities in various countries.

In a post on 'X', the US Central Command mentioned the attack on MV Sai Baba along with a similar strike targeting another vessel on Saturday.

"The M/V BLAAMANEN, a Norwegian-flagged, owned, and operated chemical/oil tanker, reported a near miss of a Houthi one-way attack drone with no injuries or damage reported," it said.

"A second vessel, the M/V SAIBABA, a Gabon-owned, Indian-flagged crude oil tanker, reported that it was hit by a one-way attack drone with no injuries reported," it added.

The US Central Command is one of key unified combatant commands of the US.

"It is a Gabon-flagged vessel," clarified an Indian official.

The US Central Command's report came a day after merchant vessel MV Chem Pluto, with around 20 Indian crew members, was hit by a suspected drone about 217 nautical miles off the Porbandar coast in the Arabian sea.

There was no report of any casualties in the incident, Indian military sources said.

The incidents came against the backdrop of Iran-backed Houthi rebels stepping up attacks on ships in the Red Sea amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.