Two merchant vessels sailing along the maritime corridor in the Black Sea off the coast of Ukraine’s Odesa region, under the flags of Tanzania and Liberia, were attacked, according to Oleh Kiper, head of the Odesa regional military administration.
Kiper said the captain of one of the ships was killed. Another 11 crew members were evacuated to shore, and three of them were injured.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that over the course of the day Russian drones struck three bulk carriers anchored near the port of Odesa. The ministry claimed the targeted vessels were being used in the “interests of the Ukrainian armed forces.”
On July 13, Kiper had reported that Russia shelled port infrastructure in Chornomorsk in the Odesa region. A merchant vessel moored in the port and flying the flag of Togo caught fire. According to Kiper, it was carrying mineral fertilizers.
In that attack, Kiper said, five crew members were killed and 10 others were wounded.
He noted that this was not the first such incident in recent weeks. On the night of June 22, a drone strike caused a fire aboard a Turkish bulk carrier bound for Ukraine under the flag of Panama. The ship’s cook was killed, and eight sailors were evacuated.
Three days earlier, two vessels under the flags of Panama and Saint Kitts and Nevis were also hit by Russian drones. One person was killed and two were injured on the first ship, while three people were hurt on the second.