Syria seeks independent probe into Alfa Watan sinking and halted crew search

Syria called on the International Maritime Organization and Bulgarian authorities on Thursday, October 8, to investigate the sinking of the cargo ship Alfa Watan in the Black Sea and why the search for its 10 crew members was stopped. Nine Syrian sailors and one Egyptian sailor remain unaccounted for, according to preliminary information reported by Syria’s state news agency SANA.

The request follows an attack on the ship early Tuesday in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone. Syrian authorities want an independent and transparent inquiry into both the sinking and the suspension of rescue operations. The available reporting does not establish who launched the attack or what happened to the missing sailors.

What Syria has asked maritime authorities to investigate

SANA reported that Syria’s General Authority for Borders and Customs had sent urgent memoranda to the International Maritime Organization and relevant Bulgarian maritime authorities. The authority asked them to examine the circumstances of the sinking and explain why the search ended before the crew’s fate was established. Mazen Alloush, its director of international relations and cooperation, said Syrian authorities were coordinating with official, diplomatic and maritime bodies over the case.

The Syrian authority also called for available technical means to locate and inspect the wreck. It said the case should remain open until available ways of obtaining reliable information about the crew had been exhausted. The request sets out what Syria wants investigated; the cited accounts give no timetable or agreed scope for an inquiry or wreck examination.

Why Bulgaria ended the search for the Alfa Watan crew

Bulgaria’s rescue operation ended at 5 p.m. local time on Tuesday, October 6, and would not resume, Rumen Nikolov, head of rescue operations at the country’s Maritime Administration, told reporters in Varna, according to Euronews. Searchers found three life rafts and an overturned lifeboat from the 83-metre ship, but no crew members. Nikolov said he believed no trace of the sailors was likely to be found.

Syria is questioning that decision. The absence of survivors in the reported search does not establish that the crew died. SANA described its count and nationalities of the missing crew as preliminary information, while Alloush said their fate remained unknown. The reason for ending the search is one of the specific issues Syria wants examined.

What is known about the two ships hit off Bulgaria

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said sea and aerial drones struck two commercial ships at about 3 a.m. local time Tuesday, roughly 70 nautical miles east of Byala, within Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone, Euronews reported. The Alfa Watan sailed under Togo’s flag and was headed for Sulina, Romania. Euronews said both vessels were Turkish-owned, citing the Equasis merchant shipping database.

The other vessel, the Palau-flagged Able, was carrying wheat southbound, according to Radev. Euronews reported that a Bulgarian ferry rescued all 18 people aboard it and took them to Varna. Two were hospitalised, one with burns and one with a head injury. Euronews said the Alfa Watan’s cargo was not known in its report.

Radev called the attack ‘absolutely unacceptable’ but did not identify who launched the drones. Euronews reported that the origin of the attack remained unclear. That uncertainty matters to the proposed inquiry: the accounts establish the reported strikes and Syria’s demand for answers, but do not identify a perpetrator.

Black Sea shipping attacks and unanswered questions

The strike came a day after a separate Turkish-owned cargo ship caught fire and sank off Romania, Euronews reported. Two crew members died, one remained missing and 11 were rescued, according to the Romanian authorities and Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry as cited by the outlet. That earlier sinking provides context for concerns about commercial shipping, but it does not establish who attacked the Alfa Watan.