Jag Arnav

Jag Arnav, an Indian-flagged tanker, was fired upon by IRGC gunboats in the Strait of Hormuz on 18 April 2026 simultaneously with the Sanmar Herald, after both vessels had received prior Iranian radio clearance to transit. The twin attack was the proximate cause of India summoning Iran's ambassador in Delhi on 18-19 April, India's first formal diplomatic protest of the 2026 war.

Jag Arnav is operated by the Great Eastern Shipping Company, one of India's largest private shipping groups. The vessel is a product tanker engaged in transporting petroleum products across the Indian Ocean trade routes. Indian-operated tankers had generally been regarded as lower-risk transits in the Strait of Hormuz given India's significant role as an Iranian crude buyer and non-aligned power.

The concurrent attacks on Jag Arnav and Sanmar Herald mark a qualitative shift in IRGC maritime operations: targeting Indian-flagged vessels after granting explicit clearance undermines the diplomatic buffer India had previously maintained with Tehran, and raises the cost of India remaining a neutral intermediary between US sanctions pressure and Iranian oil exports.