In the Black Sea, drones attacked merchant vessels: there are Azerbaijanis among the crew members

On November 13 and 14, three merchant vessels were attacked by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) off the Black Sea coast of Romania.

As reported by BAKU.WS with reference to Oxu.Az, a cargo vessel heading to Ukraine was damaged, and fires broke out on two others. Romanian officials confirmed the information. There were no fatalities or injuries as a result of the incidents.

The first case occurred on November 13 at approximately 9:40 PM local time. The drone struck the vessel Larissa 1, sailing under the flag of Palau, which was near the settlement of Sfântu Gheorghe, approximately 12 km from the Romanian coast. The vessel was heading to the Romanian port of Sulina, with Ukraine as its final destination.

As a result of the UAV strike, the vessel's cargo crane was damaged. The captain reported that no crew members were injured and the strike did not cause a fire. Romanian authorities have not determined the origin of the UAV that attacked the vessel.

According to the Romanian news agency News.ro, on the evening of November 14, two more merchant vessels were attacked by drones off the coast of Romania. This was reported by the country's Ministry of Defense.

The tanker Evia Petrol V, sailing under the Greek flag, was struck at 9:10 PM local time approximately four nautical miles east-southeast of the port of Sulina. Approximately 35 minutes later, the dry cargo vessel Marsol was also attacked near the Sulina Channel. Fires broke out on both vessels, but the crews managed to extinguish the flames. According to media reports, on one of the vessels, 13 out of 14 crew members are citizens of Azerbaijan, and one is a citizen of Turkey. There were no fatalities or injuries.

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The Romanian Ministry of Defense also reported the detection of an aerial target east of Snake Island, in connection with which two F-16 fighter jets were scrambled. Authorities warned residents of Tulcea County about the threat of a UAV attack. The origin of the drones that struck the vessels has not yet been determined.

These incidents occurred following a series of drone attacks on merchant vessels in the Black Sea. On October 28, a merchant vessel heading to Constanța was struck in Bulgarian territorial waters. In another attack that occurred on October 23 near Constanța, one sailor was killed and three others went missing.

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