New Delhi, February 5: Eight of the sixteen Indian sailors aboard the oil tanker MT Valient Roar, seized by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) last December, have been granted release.
During a media briefing in New Delhi on Thursday, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal confirmed that India is in contact with Iranian officials regarding the release of the remaining eight sailors and has assured them of full support.
Jaiswal stated, “We have received consular access. Our officials visited them in Bandar Abbas. As informed by Iranian authorities, eight of the sixteen have been released. They will return home as soon as the necessary formalities are completed. Regarding the remaining eight sailors, we are in touch with Iranian officials to provide the best support possible.”
The Indian Embassy in Tehran had informed on January 17 that they were notified by Iranian authorities about the seizure of the MT Valient Roar, which had a crew of sixteen Indian members. According to the statement, the embassy had made several requests to Iranian authorities for consular access to the crew in Bandar Abbas.
In a statement shared on X, the Indian Embassy noted, “Around mid-December 2025, the mission was informed by Iranian authorities about the seizure of the MT Valient Roar, with sixteen Indian crew members aboard. The Indian Embassy in Bandar Abbas immediately wrote to the Iranian government for consular access on December 14.”
The statement further elaborated, “Since then, requests for consular access have been reiterated multiple times. We have communicated through diplomatic correspondence and personal meetings in both Bandar Abbas and Tehran, including discussions at the ambassadorial level. We also requested Iranian authorities to allow the crew to communicate with their families in India.”
The embassy reached out to the UAE-based company that owns the vessel on December 15. They later maintained contact with the company’s agents in Iran to ensure the crew received food, water, and fuel, and to arrange legal representation for them in Iranian courts. The Indian Embassy in Tehran stated, “Upon learning that the ship was running low on food and water, the mission arranged for emergency supplies from the Iranian Navy in early January. The Indian Embassy in Dubai is also pressuring the ship’s owning company for legal assistance and to ensure regular supplies to the vessel.”
The IRGC had detained the sixteen Indian sailors in the first week of December 2025 within international waters.