Key facts
- Two commercial vessels were hit by drones in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone on Tuesday.
- The Togo-flagged Alfa Watan sank following the drone attack.
- The Palau-flagged Able caught fire, and its 18 crew members were rescued.
- Two sailors from the Able sustained severe injuries and were flown to a hospital.
- The attacks occurred approximately 80 miles (128 kilometers) off Bulgaria's coast.
- Prime Minister Rumen Radev called the attack an 'unacceptable' violation of international law.
Two commercial vessels were struck by drones in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone on Tuesday, resulting in one ship sinking and injuries to crew members on the second vessel, according to Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev. The attacks occurred around 3 a.m. local time, approximately 80 miles (128 kilometers) off Bulgaria's coast in the Black Sea.
The Togo-flagged Alfa Watan suffered critical structural damage and sank at the scene. The fate of its crew was not immediately known. The second vessel, the Palau-flagged Able, which was carrying wheat, caught fire. All 18 crew members were evacuated by a Bulgarian ferry, and two sailors with severe injuries were flown to a hospital in Varna.
Radev condemned the incident as an "unacceptable attack" and a "blatant violation of international law and maritime law." He did not attribute responsibility for the attacks but noted that the war in Ukraine was expanding geographically and increasing the risk of global conflict. The origin of the drones was not immediately established.
These attacks follow a similar incident a day earlier, where a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn reportedly sank in the Black Sea after a drone attack, an event Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as a strike by "two Russian drones on a civilian vessel."