This came hours after Israeli air strikes killed Iran’s Intelligence Minister Esmaeil Khatib, the third high-profile assassination in 24 hours. Iran had earlier warned that any attack on its energy infrastructure would trigger retaliatory strikes at energy facilities in the region. Furthermore, the Ministry sought to provide an additional quantum, in a tiered structure, should the respective governments be able to attain certain eligibility criterions. These vessels are both Indian-flagged and foreign-flagged but all are bound for India. The post on X by the department had promotional posters for free flights to India, Colombia and China.

Source: The Hindu March 19, 2026 08:42 UTC