A liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier carrying Qatari gas to Pakistan was attacked near the Strait of Hormuz on Friday evening, October 30, and turned back into the Gulf, leaving the delivery of its cargo uncertain.
The Marshall Islands-flagged vessel, Al Mayeda, owned by Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat), was struck by unidentified objects while sailing through Gulf waters as it approached the strait. Nakilat confirmed on Sunday that no crew member was injured, no environmental damage was caused, and the vessel remains safe and operational while an assessment of the incident continues. All 25 crew members, including six Indian nationals, are safe, according to India’s Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, who described the incident as a projectile attack.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack on Sunday, saying the authorities had opened an investigation to establish what happened and who was responsible, and that Qatar reserves the right to take all necessary measures under international law to protect its vessels. The United Arab Emirates’ Foreign Ministry condemned the attack on Monday, calling it a serious threat to maritime security and global energy supplies.
The incident carries a diplomatic complication. Bloomberg, citing people with direct knowledge, reported that Pakistan had negotiated with Iranian officials to secure the vessel’s safe passage through the strait, and that Iranian authorities had cleared its transit only hours before the attack. That account of prior clearance rests on Bloomberg’s sources: neither Pakistan nor Iran has publicly confirmed the arrangement, and Nakilat’s statement named no country or group as responsible. As Business Recorder notes, it would not be correct at this stage to hold Iran responsible for the incident, and the attacker remains unidentified.
Whether Al Mayeda will make another attempt to reach Pakistan, or whether the cargo will be replaced, is not yet known — an uncertainty that matters for Pakistan’s gas supply as winter demand approaches.
Sources: Business Recorder, 2 November 2026 (https://www.brecorder.com/news/40446987/pakistan-bound-lng-tanker-attacked); Profit / Pakistan Today, 2 November 2026 (https://profit.pakistantoday.com.pk/2026/11/02/pakistan-negotiated-lng-shipment-attacked-near-strait-of-hormuz); gCaptain / Bloomberg, 1 November 2026 (https://gcaptain.com/pakistan-lng-cargo-attacked-near-hormuz-had-iranian-approval/); The Siasat Daily, 1 November 2026 (https://www.siasat.com/qatar-lng-tanker-carrying-6-indians-hit-near-hormuz-3568325/).
