Image for representation purposes only Patnala Suresh, an Indian marine engineer, had last spoken to his wife with a promise that he would return home safely and they would celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary together later this month. “He told me he would be home soon. I never imagined he would return like this,” said his wife, Patnala Bhargavi. Suresh was serving as chief engineer aboard the MT Settebello, an oil tanker that was operating in the Gulf of Oman when it was struck by the US military on Wednesday. He was one of three Indian sailors killed in the incident. According to the US military, the strike was part of an effort to enforce a blockade on Iran-linked shipping. US Central Command said the tanker had repeatedly failed to follow instructions and was carrying Iranian oil. It also said precision munitions were fired into the vessel’s engine room. However, the ship’s manager, IOS Marine FZE, rejected the claims, stating that the tanker had no connection to Iran and had received no warning before the attack. The company has called for a transparent international investigation and said the vessel “holds no affiliation whatsoever with Iran or Iranian oil”. Twenty-one other crew members, all Indian nationals, were rescued after the strike. Suresh had worked at sea for around 15 years as a marine engineer. As chief engineer, he was responsible for maintaining and inspecting key machinery onboard. His family said he had been at sea for months at a time and rarely took extended leave, though they were used to his long absences. Communication with the vessel became irregular from 5 June and stopped completely by 9 June. At first, Bhargavi believed it was a network issue due to the ship being at sea. For two days, the family waited for updates before being informed that Suresh had been killed in the strike. They initially hoped there had been a mistake, but that hope faded after confirmation from the ship’s management. According to the family, they were later