Other media outlets gave conflicting reports saying rescuers were attempting to reach a helicopter involved in an 'incident'.

The contract, formalised between India Ports Global Ltd and Iran's Ports and Maritime Organisation, marks India's maiden endeavor in managing an overseas port. 

Early this week, the US imposed sanctions on suppliers to Pakistan’s ballistic missile programme, including three companies from China.

In a significant development, the United States and the United Kingdom have imposed new sanctions on Iran following its recent attack on Israel, an action that has significantly escalated tensions in the Middle East. This weekend's events mark a worrying progression in the regional conflict, potentially edging closer to an all-out war.

India has initiated diplomatic efforts to secure the release of 17 Indian nationals who are on board an Israeli-linked container ship seized by the Iranian military. The seizure of the ship, MSC Aries, occurred amidst escalating tensions between Iran and Israel.

Israel was on high alert on Thursday after Iran threatened retaliation over a recent strike in Syria that killed two Iranian generals. 

Israeli embassies 'no longer safe,' warns advisor to Iran's supreme leader.

President Joe Biden's administration is reportedly concerned about strikes taking place within Israel, especially targeting 'military or intelligence targets, rather than civilians.'

Jaish al-Adl, identified as a Sunni terrorist group founded in 2012 and designated as a "terrorist" organisation by Iran, operates in the Sistan-Baluchistan region of southeastern Iran, as per the interior ministry.

Unidentified assailants opened indiscriminate fire near the Pakistan-Iran border in Iran's Sistan-Baluchestan province, resulting in the tragic killing of nine Pakistani workers and injuring three others. 

At a separate press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said his country would respond to the attack on its soldiers in Jordan. US troops long have used Jordan, a kingdom bordering Iraq, Israel, the Palestinian territory of the West Bank, Saudi Arabia and Syria, as a basing point.

"INS Sumitra, deployed on anti-piracy operations along the east coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden, responded to a distress message regarding the hijacking of an Iranian flagged fishing vessel Iman," Indian Navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said.