Syria calls for independent probe into sinking of ship in Black Sea

Syrian authorities have called for an independent and transparent investigation after the cargo ship Alfa Watan sank in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea. The Togolese-flagged vessel went down early on Tuesday, and Syrian officials said 10 crew members — nine Syrian nationals and one Egyptian — remain unaccounted for.

Mazen Aloush of Syria’s port authority urged the International Maritime Organization and Bulgarian authorities to determine why search-and-rescue operations were suspended before the missing sailors had been found. He told officials that the sailors’ fate is still unknown and pressed for clarification on the reasons behind the halt to recovery efforts.

The attack that sank the Alfa Watan also struck the Palau-flagged Able, leaving that ship ablaze; 18 crew members of Turkish and Indian nationality were rescued. According to the Equasis merchant shipping database, both commercial vessels were managed by companies based in Turkey. It was not clear from available reporting who carried out the strike on the Alfa Watan.

Aloush described the targeting of a civilian commercial vessel as a grave violation of maritime security and a danger to seafarers. He said Syria’s General Authority for Ports and Customs is monitoring the situation and called on authorities and maritime organizations to employ technical means to locate and inspect the wreckage and to bolster protections for commercial shipping as attacks in the Black Sea increase.