India Calls Middle East Escalation "Deeply Worrying" at UNSC, Condemns Attacks on Saudi Airports and Indian Seafarers

India has expressed serious concern over the growing violence in the Middle East. It condemned the repeated strikes on civilian infrastructure, commercial shipping and seafarers, including attacks on Saudi airports.

Speaking at the UN Security Council's debate on the Middle East on Thursday, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Harish Parvathaneni, said India has a major stake in the region's safety and stability. He said lasting peace means more than the absence of war and requires stronger security and stability for the people of the region. He called the situation one of the biggest challenges facing the world today and repeated India's appeal for restraint and de-escalation.

Solidarity with Saudi Arabia

India strongly condemned the attacks on civilian infrastructure, including Saudi airports, over the past few days. These attacks have cost lives, among them an Indian national, Mohammad Yousef Ali, who died in Riyadh. Parvathaneni said India stands firmly with the Saudi government and its people in defending their sovereignty.

Shipping and seafarer safety

India pressed for an immediate end to attacks on merchant vessels, seafarers and civilian infrastructure, and for the conflict to be settled through dialogue and diplomacy. It said freedom of navigation and the safe flow of maritime trade must be protected under international law.

The envoy listed recent attacks on commercial ships:

• India-flagged MV DP World Cauvery, this week

• MT Petro Dolphin and MT Valthera, last week

• MT On Peace and MT Kazimah III, the week before

He said such attacks are legally and morally indefensible. Several of these ships carried Indian crew, whose safety India treats as its direct responsibility. He thanked Oman and the UAE for helping keep the Indian seafarers safe.

New seafarer initiatives

Last month, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly's high-level week, India and Liberia launched the "Group of Friends on Safety and Security of Shipping and Seafarers". Twenty-three other member states joined the launch. Parvathaneni said the group is inclusive, voluntary and action-oriented, noting that nearly two million seafarers run the world's merchant fleet and that sea routes carry about four-fifths of global trade.

He also recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at the BRICS Leaders' Summit in New Delhi last month, proposed a "Seafarers Emergency Support Network". It would link maritime authorities and embassies to handle distress alerts, medical help, contact with families and evacuations when needed.

Yemen, Red Sea and Gaza

On Yemen, India reaffirmed its support for the country's unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity and rejected outside interference. It condemned attacks on shipping and seafarers, calling the security of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Southern Red Sea a shared global responsibility.

India also cautioned that the focus on shipping and the Strait of Hormuz must not pull attention from the severe humanitarian situation in Gaza. It said terrorism has no justification and recalled its clear condemnation of the October 7, 2023 attacks. India reiterated its support for humanitarian relief, dialogue and a negotiated two-state solution. It also noted that it is among the leading emerging donors to UNRWA, with contributions above $52 million.

Lebanon

India said UNIFIL peacekeepers must never be targeted and condemned all attacks on them. It stressed that UN premises must be respected, and called for planning for the period after UNIFIL and for support to the Lebanese Armed Forces.