Body of missing Indian sailor recovered after Iran attack on ship off Oman

The body of an Indian sailor who had been unaccounted for since an attack on his vessel off Oman's coast has been recovered, according to a seafarers' union official. Heramb Karmarkar, a 30-year-old marine engineer from Pune, had been missing since the vessel, the Cyprus-flagged GFS Galaxy, came under attack on Sunday.

Manoj Yadav of the Forward Seamen's Union of India said he was informed on Tuesday evening by the shipping company that Karmarkar's body had been located by Oman's coast guard, nearly 60 hours after his disappearance was first reported.

The remaining 23 crew members on board, including 10 Indian nationals, were rescued the same day the ship was attacked. US Central Command said the vessel had been disabled after a fire and engine room damage, and attributed the attack to Iran.

India is among the world's largest suppliers of maritime labour, with more than 320,000 seafarers active globally as of 2025, officials say. Following the incident, India's foreign ministry described attacks on commercial shipping in the region as deeply concerning, calling for an end to the targeting of civilian maritime infrastructure.

The assault took place shortly after Iran declared it was shutting down the Strait of Hormuz and fired missiles and drones at neighbouring Gulf states, in what it described as retaliation for US military action. The strait, through which roughly a fifth of global oil shipments passed before hostilities began on February 28, remains a central flashpoint in the standoff between Washington and Tehran.