By Bosphorus News Geopolitics Desk
A Turkish-flagged cargo ship carrying coal from Russia to Trabzon was damaged in a drone attack in the Black Sea on Wednesday, with two injured crew members evacuated after the vessel reached waters off Samsun.
The operator of MV Reyhan Sarı said the ship was attacked while under way on July 22 but remained operational and continued sailing under its own power. The company said damage was recorded in the vessel's communications systems and that two injured crew members were taken to hospitals by helicopter after the ship reached Samsun waters.
Initial reports said one engine-room crew member was killed and three others were injured. The operator's subsequent statement confirmed the evacuation of two injured sailors but did not confirm a death, saying one crew member had not yet been reached. Bosphorus News could not independently reconcile the conflicting casualty figures.
The vessel had departed from Russia's Taman port with a cargo of coal bound for Trabzon. Turkish media placed the attack near Novorossiysk, while other reports referred to international waters off Samsun. The company did not publish coordinates, and Samsun was also identified as the area the ship reached after the attack. The precise location therefore remains unconfirmed.
No government has claimed responsibility, and Turkish authorities have not publicly identified the origin or type of the drone. There was also no immediate indication whether Reyhan Sarı was deliberately targeted or struck during a wider operation in the Black Sea.
The attack places a Turkish-flagged commercial vessel directly inside the expanding maritime threat created by the Russia-Ukraine war. The ship was carrying Russian cargo to a Turkish port, but the available evidence does not establish which side launched the drone.
Two wounded crew members were transferred from the vessel by a Turkish Coast Guard helicopter and taken to hospitals in Samsun. Their conditions were not immediately disclosed.
The incident follows a widening series of attacks on merchant ships, ports and maritime infrastructure in the Black Sea. Bosphorus News recently reported that Russian and Ukrainian operations were increasingly affecting commercial vessels and regional trade routes.
Türkiye has maintained economic and maritime links with both Russia and Ukraine while seeking to protect commercial navigation through the Black Sea and the Turkish Straits. A confirmed attack on a Turkish flagged ship could increase pressure on Ankara to establish who launched the drone and whether Turkish linked trade routes are being deliberately targeted.
Sources: Vessel operator statement, Turkish Coast Guard evacuation reporting, İhlas News Agency, Dünya, Bosphorus News review and reporting.