Two general cargo vessels were struck by drones during the night of 5-6 October 2026 in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Black Sea, around 70-80 nautical miles off the coast near Byala. The Togo-flagged Alfa Watan sank and its crew is still reported missing, while a fire broke out aboard the Palau-flagged Able and all 18 seafarers were rescued by the Bulgarian ro-pax vessel Dioscuria before being transferred to Navy and Border Police vessels for transport ashore. The government in Sofia convened an emergency meeting involving four ministries - Defence, Interior, Transport, and Environment and Water - together with the presidency and security services. Sources differ over the timing of the attack: Alfa Watan's last position on VesselFinder was recorded shortly after 01:00 local time, while Bulgarian public television BNT places the incident at around 03:00, with the first alert triggered by an emergency beacon, and BNR reports distress signals at around 04:00. According to Turkish media sources, both vessels are Turkish-owned.
As of the morning of 6 October, no one had claimed responsibility for the attack and the Bulgarian authorities had not identified its origin. There has also been no public information on the number and type of drones used, the points of impact on the vessels or whether the two incidents were coordinated. This is the first attack of its kind in Bulgaria's EEZ, marking an extension of the naval conflict between Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea. Only a day earlier, the Saint Kitts and Nevis-flagged cargo ship Royad Mammadov sank following a fire in Romania's EEZ. The authorities in Bucharest said the sinking left two people dead and 11 survivors. Italy is also indirectly involved in this incident, as the vessel was heading for Ravenna after calling at Izmail in Ukraine with a cargo of Turkish-owned maize.
Antonio Illariuzzi
