Representation image A fire in the engine room of an Indian-crewed tanker off the coast of Oman has forced the evacuation of its 20 seafarers, the latest in a run of incidents hitting merchant ships in the region. The vessel, the asphalt and bitumen tanker MT Jalveer, ran into trouble near Shinas port in northern Oman on Thursday. Smoke was seen coming out from the ship after a blaze broke out in its engine room, according to Indian official sources. All 20 Indian crew members are safe. The Embassy of India in Oman said the crew were being moved to Shinas port with help from the Royal Navy of Oman. Evacuation of the crew was being coordinated with the Omani navy and would be completed soon, the mission said on X. The Oman Coast Guard sent a rescue boat to the vessel. Britain’s naval reporting body for the region, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), said earlier that it had received a report of a tanker on fire near the port city of Sohar. It did not name the ship and advised vessels to transit with caution while authorities investigated. What caused the fire is not yet clear. The Forward Seamen’s Union of India identified the burning vessel as the Jalveer and circulated images of thick smoke rising from it. Some reports described the incident as an attack, but neither the Indian government nor Omani authorities have confirmed any strike, and the cause remains under investigation. The Jalveer is an asphalt and bitumen tanker measuring just under 120 metres, sailing under the flag of Guinea-Bissau, according to tracking site MarineTraffic. The fire is the third incident involving Indian-crewed vessels off Oman in barely four days. On June 8, the Palau-flagged tanker MT Marivex caught fire after a reported strike near the Strait of Hormuz; all 24 of its Indian crew were rescued. Two days later, U.S. forces carried out a precision strike on the tanker MT Settebello in the Gulf of Oman, saying the ship had defied instructions and was carryin