MT Fujairah Energy: Four Crew Injured as Projectile Hits Oil Tanker in the Persian Gulf

Four crew members were injured when a projectile struck a large oil tanker in the Persian Gulf on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, in the latest attack on commercial shipping in one of the world’s most important waterways.

The vessel, the Liberia-flagged very large crude carrier (VLCC) MT Fujairah Energy, was sailing from Al Ruwais in the United Arab Emirates to Dubai when it was hit. Six Indian seafarers were among the crew on board. One of the injured is an Indian national who suffered minor injuries and was taken ashore for further medical examination. The remaining 18 crew members, including the other five Indian seafarers, are safe and accounted for.

India’s Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, confirmed the attack on Wednesday in a post on X, saying the government was closely monitoring the situation and staying in contact with the ship’s management company. Indian authorities said they were working to ensure medical care and the safety of the affected crew.

The attack came on the same day that another vessel was damaged in the region, and a day before maritime authorities reported yet another incident in the Strait of Hormuz. Together, the incidents show that the danger to merchant shipping in the Gulf has not eased, even as diplomats talk about ending the war between the United States and Iran.

What happened to the MT Fujairah Energy

The MT Fujairah Energy is a very large crude carrier — one of the biggest classes of oil tanker, built to carry around two million barrels of crude oil in a single voyage. It flies the flag of Liberia, a common practice in international shipping, where vessels are registered in countries other than the home country of their owners or crew.

On Tuesday, 10 November, the tanker was travelling from Al Ruwais, a port on the western coast of the UAE, to Dubai. The journey takes it through the Persian Gulf, past some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.

Somewhere along that route, a projectile hit the vessel. The exact type of weapon has not been confirmed in public reporting, and it is not yet clear who fired it. No group had publicly claimed responsibility for the strike as of Wednesday evening.

What is confirmed is the human cost. Four crew members were injured, including one Indian seafarer. That sailor’s injuries were described as minor, and he was taken ashore for medical checks. The other 18 crew members on board were reported safe.

Minister Sonowal’s post on X gave the clearest official account of the incident: “On Nov 10, Liberia-flagged VLCC MT FUJAIRAH ENERGY, carrying 6 Indian seafarers, was hit by a projectile while transiting the Persian Gulf from Al Ruwais to Dubai. Four crew members sustained injuries in the attack, including one Indian national, who suffered minor injuries and has been safely taken ashore for further medical examination.”

The incident was reported by several news outlets on Wednesday, including Gulf News, The Economic Times, India TV and The Statesman, all citing the minister’s statement.

A second attack on the same day

The Fujairah Energy was not the only vessel hit on Tuesday. ADNOC Logistics and Services, the shipping arm of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, confirmed that one of its vessels was damaged in an attack in UAE territorial waters in the Arabian Gulf on the same day.

ADNOC Logistics and Services has been hit repeatedly during the conflict. In a statement on 7 August, the company said 15 of its vessels had been attacked by missiles and drones since the conflict began, resulting in one death and 20 injuries among crew members. It later confirmed further attacks in August, including one involving a missile and two vessels attacked on 13 August. Earlier, on 14 July, two ADNOC-operated crude oil tankers, the Al Bahyah and the Mombasa B, were struck by projectiles while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

The fact that the latest attack happened inside UAE territorial waters, rather than in the narrowest part of the strait, underlines how the danger has spread beyond the choke point itself. Ships are now at risk across a much wider area of the Gulf.

Then, early on Wednesday, 11 November, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the British body that monitors shipping security in the region, said it had received a report of another tanker-related incident in the Strait of Hormuz. Details of that incident were still limited, but it added to a pattern that has been building for months.

A record month of attacks

The attacks on Tuesday were not isolated events. They were part of the worst month for shipping attacks in the region since the war began.

According to figures cited by Reuters, 37 ships were attacked in October — the highest monthly total since the conflict began in February. Another 10 attacks had already been recorded in November by Wednesday, 11 November.

The International Maritime Organization, the United Nations body responsible for shipping safety, has documented 130 maritime incidents across the region since the war began, most of them attacks. At least 25 seafarers have been killed.

These figures explain why the Fujairah Energy incident matters beyond the fate of one ship. Every attack adds to the risk faced by the thousands of civilian sailors who keep the world’s oil moving, and every attack raises the cost of shipping through the Gulf — through higher insurance premiums, longer routes and, in some cases, ships refusing to sail at all.

The pattern of attacks has also changed. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has sought to enforce restrictions on vessels travelling through the Strait of Hormuz, warning ships against using what it calls unauthorised routes. On Sunday, 8 November, three tankers were hit for allegedly using unauthorised routes, according to Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, citing the IRGC Navy.

Separately, the Revolutionary Guards said two tankers had caught fire after striking naval mines. Those claims have not been independently verified, and they should not be confused with the projectile attack on the Fujairah Energy or the attack on the ADNOC vessel. Reuters verified footage showing a Navig8-managed tanker burning near Oman, and Navig8 is majority-owned by ADNOC Logistics and Services.

The attacks have also caused environmental damage. Reuters verified footage showing oil reaching Oman’s coastline, while satellite imagery revealed spills off Oman and the UAE. The damage threatens marine ecosystems, coastal communities and shipping operations that are already struggling with high insurance costs and security risks.

Caught between two armed forces

Merchant ships in the Gulf are now caught between two armed forces, each enforcing its own restrictions.

While Iran restricts traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, American forces continue to enforce a naval blockade of Iranian ports. In the latest reported incident, US Central Command said an American military aircraft fired on and disabled a St Kitts-flagged cargo vessel, the Huda, that had visited an Iranian port and attempted to leave regional waters.

The competing restrictions have turned commercial shipping into an instrument of pressure in the wider conflict. For Tehran, disrupting shipping offers leverage against Washington’s military and economic pressure. For Washington, the blockade is a tool to squeeze Iran’s economy and its ability to export oil.

But the cost is paid by civilian crews who are not parties to the conflict. The 25 seafarers killed so far, and the four injured aboard the Fujairah Energy, are a reminder that the people on these ships are workers doing their jobs, not combatants.

ADNOC has repeatedly called for the protection of seafarers and freedom of navigation. The company, and the shipping industry more broadly, has warned that the attacks are making it harder to recruit crews willing to sail through the region.

Why the attacks continue while peace talks are discussed

The timing of the latest attacks is striking. Mediators, including Qatar, have been trying to bring Washington and Tehran towards a settlement. US officials have also struck a more conciliatory tone in recent days.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in Paris on Tuesday that the economic pressure campaign against Iran was so effective that “there is no need for major combat operations” right now. He added that the United States might still respond with force if Iran crossed certain red lines.

Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, said on Tuesday that Tehran was still waiting for a US answer to its seven conditions for peace talks. The Strait of Hormuz will not reopen, he said, until those conditions are met.

The continued attacks suggest that maritime pressure remains an important part of the confrontation, even as diplomats talk. In an investigation published on 14 October, Reuters quoted two senior Iranian officials who said Iran had changed its tactics to intensify attacks on vessels and keep global oil prices elevated. One official said the objective was to frustrate American efforts to reduce energy prices, and the strategy was also intended to influence the US midterm elections on 3 November.

Those elections are now over — the Democrats won control of both houses of Congress — but the attacks have continued. That suggests the maritime campaign serves a longer-term purpose: maintaining leverage over Washington, particularly over the US blockade and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

There is a significant danger in that approach. Continued attacks could undermine confidence in negotiations, increase pressure on Washington to respond militarily, and make shipping companies reluctant to return even if an agreement is reached.

Analysts at the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), a global financial data and analytics provider, have warned that restoring shipping through the Strait of Hormuz would depend on mine clearance, insurance costs and shipowners’ willingness to return. None of those problems is solved quickly.

Why the Strait of Hormuz matters so much

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman, connecting the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea. Before the war, it carried roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade. Almost all of the oil exported by Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, the UAE, Qatar and Iran passes through it.

That is why attacks on ships there matter far beyond the Gulf. When shipping through the strait is disrupted, oil prices rise, and the cost of petrol, diesel, cooking gas and almost everything transported by road goes up around the world.

In Pakistan, the effect is direct. Petrol prices have fallen sharply in recent days — down to Rs 338 a litre on 11 November, from Rs 377.91 at the end of October — because world oil prices have dropped. Benchmark Brent crude fell to $91.49 a barrel on 10 November, down from $113.43 on 30 October. But that relief rests on a fragile assumption: that the oil will keep flowing through Hormuz. If the attacks escalate and shipping through the strait is disrupted, prices could climb again just as quickly.

For more on the wider pattern of attacks in the strait, see our earlier coverage: Tankers Still Burning in the Strait of Hormuz as Talk of an End to the Iran War Fades and Three Oil Tankers Catch Fire in the Strait of Hormuz After Hitting Mines — What It Means for Oil and Pakistan.

What happens next

Several things are worth watching in the days ahead.

First, whether the injured crew members recover, and whether the Fujairah Energy can continue its voyage. The damage to the vessel has not been described in detail in public reporting, and it is not yet clear whether the tanker will need repairs before it can sail again.

Second, whether the identity of the attacker is established. As of Wednesday evening, no group had publicly claimed responsibility, and the type of projectile used had not been confirmed. That gap matters, because it leaves open whether the attack was part of Iran’s campaign against shipping, or something else entirely.

Third, whether the pace of attacks in November continues at the rate set in October. Ten attacks had already been recorded by Wednesday, 11 November. If the rate continues, November could match or exceed October’s record of 37 ships attacked.

Fourth, whether the attacks affect the diplomacy. Iran’s security chief has tied the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to a US answer to Tehran’s seven conditions. The United States, for its part, has said its economic campaign is working and that major combat operations are not needed. The gap between those positions is where the next phase of the conflict will be decided — and where the safety of civilian sailors hangs in the balance.

Finally, whether shipping companies change their behaviour. If attacks continue at this rate, more shipowners may refuse to send vessels through the Gulf, or demand much higher insurance premiums. That would push up the cost of oil for everyone, including countries like Pakistan that import almost all of their fuel.

For the four injured crew members of the Fujairah Energy, and for the thousands of seafarers still sailing through the Gulf, the question is simpler: whether the next voyage will be safe.

Frequently asked questions

What happened to the MT Fujairah Energy?

The Liberia-flagged very large crude carrier was struck by a projectile on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, while sailing from Al Ruwais in the UAE to Dubai through the Persian Gulf. Four crew members were injured, including one Indian seafarer who suffered minor injuries and was taken ashore for medical examination.

How many people were on board?

Six Indian seafarers were among the crew. Four crew members were injured. The remaining 18 crew members, including the other five Indian seafarers, were reported safe and accounted for.

Who attacked the tanker?

It is not yet clear who fired the projectile, and no group had publicly claimed responsibility as of Wednesday evening. The type of weapon used has also not been confirmed in public reporting.

Was this the only attack that day?

No. On the same day, ADNOC Logistics and Services confirmed that one of its vessels was damaged in an attack in UAE territorial waters in the Arabian Gulf. Early on Wednesday, 11 November, UKMTO reported another tanker-related incident in the Strait of Hormuz.

How bad are the attacks on shipping in the Gulf?

According to figures cited by Reuters, 37 ships were attacked in October — the highest monthly total since the conflict began in February — and another 10 attacks had been recorded in November by Wednesday, 11 November. The International Maritime Organization has documented 130 maritime incidents in the region since the war began, most of them attacks, with at least 25 seafarers killed.

Why does the Strait of Hormuz matter?

The strait connects the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea, and before the war it carried roughly one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade. Disruption there pushes up oil prices worldwide, which raises the cost of petrol, diesel and almost everything transported by road.

Sources

• Gulf News — “Iran’s High-Stakes Hormuz Strategy: Why Tanker Attacks Persist Amid Peace Talks”
• Gulf News — “Middle East conflict: Iran Accuses US of Threat-Based Diplomacy as Trump Backs Defence Secretary”
• The Economic Times — “Indian seafarer injured as projectile hits Liberia-flagged oil tanker in Persian Gulf”
• Safety4Sea — “Four seafarers injured as attacks on vessels continue in the Persian Gulf”
• India TV News — “Indian seafarer among four injured as projectile hits Liberia-flagged oil tanker in Persian Gulf”
• The Statesman — “Indian seafarer among four injured as projectile hits Liberia-flagged ship in Persian Gulf”
• Nukta — “Pakistan petrol price falls nearly PKR 40 per liter”
• The Rest of the World Report — “Rest of the World Report | November 11, 2026 — Morning Edition”

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.