Crew Safe After Containership Struck by Drones Off Bulgaria

Sea drones struck a container ship off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast on Wednesday, the ship's owner and the government said, the latest in a string of attacks that have raised concerns about the growing scope of Russia's war in Ukraine.

It was not clear who carried out the attack on the Greek ship that was sailing under the Liberian flag in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone (EEZ), or what the vessel's 421 containers were carrying.

"A container ship was hit...with three naval drones, approximately 21 miles southeast of Shabla," Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov told reporters on the sidelines of a regional security meeting.

Bulgaria's transport ministry said in a statement that four naval and police boats had been dispatched to assist the vessel, which was travelling from the Israeli port of Haifa to Constanța in Romania, and that the 18 crew members had been evacuated.

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