ANKARA, Turkey: A cargo ship sank in rough waters off Turkey’s Black Sea coast on Monday, killing six crew members including its captain, officials and media reports said. Seven other crew members were rescued.
Turkish authorities launched a search and rescue mission off the Black Sea coastal province of Samsun after receiving a distress signal from the Panama-flagged vessel, Volgo Balt 214, the governor’s office said.
Samsun Gov. Osman Kaymak told reporters after visiting the survivors in hospital that six crew members, including the captain, died before rescuers could reach the area. He quoted one of the survivors as saying that the hull split into two after being hit by a powerful wave.
The vessel, which was carrying coal, was heading to Samsun from the Russian port of Azov, the coast guard said. It was located about 80 nautical miles (92 statute miles) from Samsun when it sent a distress signal at 8:10 a.m. (0510 GMT; 12:10 a.m. EST).
The crew included 11 Ukrainians and two Azerbaijan nationals, Kaymak said.
The Turkish Coast Guard said a plane, three helicopters and two boats took part in the rescue operation.
Cargo ship sinks off Turkey’s Black Sea coast; 6 dead
Cargo ship sinks off Turkey’s Black Sea coast; 6 dead
- The state-run Anadolu Agency said the vessel split into two during the sinking
- The Turkish Coast Guard said a plane, three helicopters and two boats were taking part in the rescue operation
2 US service members and one American civilian killed in ambush in Syria, US Central Command says
- The attack is the first to inflict casualties since the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad a year ago
DAMASCUS, Syria: Two US service members and one American civilian have been killed and three other people wounded in an ambush on Saturday by the Daesh group in central Syria, the US Central Command said.
The attack is the first to inflict casualties since the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad a year ago.
Central Command said in a post on X that as a matter of respect for the families and in accordance with Department of War policy, the identities of the service members will be withheld until 24 hours after their next of kin have been notified.
Shots were fired at Syrian and US forces on Saturday during a visit by American troops to a historic central town, leaving several wounded, Syria’s state media and a war monitor said.
The shooting took place near Palmyra, according to the state-run SANA news agency, which said two members of Syria’s security force and several US service members were wounded. The injured were taken by helicopters to the Al-Tanf garrison near the border with Iraq and Jordan.
SANA said the attacker was killed, without providing further details.
A US defense official told The Associated Press that they are aware of the reports and did not have any information to provide immediately. The official spoke on condition of anonymity for not being authorized to speak to the media.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least three Syrian security members were wounded as well as several Americans. It added that the attacker was a member of the Syrian security force.
The US has hundreds of troops deployed in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting the Daesh group.
Last month, Syria joined the international coalition fighting against Daesh as Damascus improves its relations with Western countries following last year’s fall of President Bashar Assad when insurgents captured his seat of power in Damascus.
The US had no diplomatic relations with Syria under Assad, but ties have warmed since the fall of the five-decade Assad family rule. The interim president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, made a historic visit to Washington last month where he held talks with President Donald Trump.
Daesh was defeated in Syria in 2019 but the group’s sleeper cells still carry out deadly attacks in the country. The United Nations says the group still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
US troops, which have maintained a presence in different parts of Syria — including Al-Tanf garrison in the central province of Homs — to train other forces as part of a broad campaign against Daesh, have been targeted in the past. One of the deadliest attacks occurred in 2019 in the northern town of Manbij when a blast killed two US service members and two American civilians as well as others from Syria while conducting a patrol.
