No warning before shooting: Indian boat survivors

, Jul 17: The

aboard a ship targeted by the US Navy off Dubai coast claimed that they received no warning before being fired upon and the American action was unprovoked.

"According to the survivors, there were no warnings given to them," Indian Ambassador to the UAE MK Lokesh told PTI. "There are many versions of the incident. We have to wait for the details to emerge," the ambassador said.

An Indian fisherman was killed and three others were wounded when a security team onboard a US Navy ship fired at their small boat off the Dubai coast. The survivors account differs from that provided by the US Navy, which said it resorted to lethal force only after issuing a series of warnings.

When asked about Dubai police chief Lt Gen. Dahi Khalfan Tamim's comment that an initial investigation suggests "the boat was in its right course and did not pose any danger", the Indian envoy said, "I think we should wait for the truth to come out."

"We have requested an investigation and they have already begun that on their own," Lokesh said, adding the three injured people are recovering in a Dubai hospital. All of them –Muthu Muniraj (28), Muthu Kannan (35) and Pandu Sanadhan (26) –hail from Tamil Nadu.

Indian embassy officials visited them in the hospital and have promised all possible support. The US has expressed regret for the incident and assured that it will conduct a full investigation.

PTI