Two Ships Hit Off Bulgaria; One Sinks, 11 Missing

Two cargo ships came under drone attack in the western Black Sea overnight. The HS Dignity sank. Eleven crew members are missing.

The attacks happened before dawn on October 13, inside Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone. Five people were pulled from the water. The HS Dignity, Guinea-Bissau-flagged and en route from Mostaganem, Algeria, to Braila, Romania, sank beneath the Black Sea swell. All 15 crew aboard the Chelsea 3 were rescued after three drones struck the Maltese-flagged ship near Byala on Bulgaria's coast.

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Rumen Radev summoned the Russian ambassador. He said the outcome "benefits Russia," though no official attribution has been confirmed.

Euronews reported that NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the alliance is adjusting its deterrence posture in the Black Sea. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the attacks "another front of escalation."

The strikes follow weeks of drone attacks on merchant ships in these waters. Earlier this month, a sea drone hit the cargo ship ABLE in Bulgaria's Black Sea zone, flooding its engine room and forcing all 18 crew to evacuate. Before that, drones sank the Togo-flagged Alfa Watan in the same stretch of sea, with crew reported missing. According to maritime risk firm Ambrey, at least 45 merchant ships have been struck in the eastern Black Sea in the past year.