The Indian Navy on Wednesday successfully rescued 21 crew members, including an Indian national, from a merchant vessel that caught fire following a missile strike in the Gulf of Aden.
The Navy said in a statement on Thursday that its naval warship, INS Kolkata, swiftly responded to the distress call and all the crew members were safely rescued and evacuated to Djibouti.
The Barbados-flagged bulk carrier MV True Confidence was reportedly hit by a drone/missile, approximately 55 nautical miles South West of Aden, resulting in critical injuries to some of the crew members and forcing the crew to abandon the ship, the statement added.
Earlier on Wednesday, INS Kolkata responded to another distress call from a Liberian-flagged container vessel, MSC Sky II, which was reportedly attacked by a missile in the southeast of Aden.
(With inputs from ANI)
