Two dead as Turkish-operated cargo ship carrying Ukrainian grain sinks off the coast of Romania after drone attack

Two lives were lost when a Turkish-operated cargo ship transporting Ukrainian grain sank off the coast of Romania due to a drone attack, according to local reports. The vessel, the Royad Mammadov (IMO: 9356969), caught fire and sank, resulting in the deaths of two of its 13 crew members and injuries to 11 others. The incident occurred approximately 20 nautical miles from the Romanian shore, where the ship was en route to Italy.

The ship departed from the Ukrainian port of Izmail in mid-September and entered the Black Sea on October 3. Its last known transmission indicated an attack around 9:20 local time on October 5, which likely caused the fire that ultimately led to the ship sinking. Romania's Naval Authority has not officially confirmed the cause of the fire, and Romanian media reported the drone attack without official confirmation.

This is not the first such incident; last week, Russia attacked a Liberian-flagged cargo ship in a Ukrainian port, resulting in one death. The total fatalities from drone strikes on ships in the Black Sea have now reached seven.