One Dead After Drone Hits Turkish-Owned Cargo Ship In Black Sea

The Panama-registered dry cargo ship “VICTRESS” caught fire after being hit by an unmanned aerial vehicle, the Ukrainian Navy said. The vessel was carrying nine crew members from Turkey, Egypt and India.

The victim was a 58-year-old Egyptian cook, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said, adding that the remaining eight crew members escaped on a life raft and were later rescued by Ukrainian naval forces.

The Ukrainian Navy said the rescue mission was launched due to concerns that the fire could spread throughout the vessel. Authorities added that the ship suffered extensive damage and was no longer seaworthy.

Ukraine accused Russia of carrying out the strike, arguing that the incident highlighted the continuing dangers faced by civilian shipping operating in the Black Sea.

According to maritime tracking data, the vessel departed from Istanbul’s Kartal anchorage on June 19 and was en route to the Romanian port of Sulina.

The latest attack follows a series of incidents targeting commercial vessels in the region. In March, a Turkish ship was also hit by unmanned aerial and naval drones near Istanbul.

Last month, Russian kamikaze drones targeted another dry cargo vessel sailing from Ukraine’s Odesa region toward Turkey. The attack sparked a fire on board and injured two crew members.

Following a previous strike on a Turkish-operated vessel, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement on March 26 expressing serious concern over the incident.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncü Keçeli emphasized that the assault had taken place within Turkey’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Black Sea and described it as a clear breach of international law.