Turkish sailors sue Ukraine over deadly drone attack
The crew of a Turkish cargo ship hit by Ukrainian drones has filed a complaint against Kiev with the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the attack, which killed one sailor and injured two others, lawyers said on Wednesday. The plaintiffs include 12 crew members, the family of the deceased sailor, and the ship’s owner.
The ICC filing says the vessel was carrying wheat meal from the Russian Black Sea port of Tuapse to Trabzon when it was attacked on July 22, although Turkish media reported at the time that it was carrying coal from Taman, another Russian Black Sea port.
Photos and videos taken after the attack show “extensive internal damage” to the ship’s compartments and apparent traces of shrapnel, according to the complaint. The plaintiffs have asked the Hague-based court to investigate the attack as a possible crime against humanity.
Ukraine ratified the ICC’s Rome Statute in 2024, becoming a full member of the court on January 1, 2025.
“There is concrete information and footage showing that the attack originated from Ukraine,” Nuri Koray Kurun, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs, said. He added that the strike was consistent with Ukraine’s stated campaign of targeting shipping in the area.
“Videos of this operation, as well as footage showing the moment our ship was hit, were openly shared on official social media accounts. Our technical analysis of the vessel shown being struck in the video established that it was the Reyhan Sari,” Kurun said.
Türkiye summoned the Ukrainian ambassador last month, formally lodging a protest over strikes on its commercial shipping in the Black Sea. In July, India also summoned Kiev’s envoy after drones targeted the cargo vessel Omorfi, killing an Indian sailor.
Ukraine stepped up attacks on cargo ships in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov over the summer in an effort to disrupt Russian logistics and target Russia’s supposed ‘shadow fleet’, which Kiev alleges helps Moscow circumvent Western sanctions.
Russia has denied that it operates a shadow fleet and accused Ukraine of striking purely civilian targets. Moscow has also accused Kiev of routinely targeting civilian trucks, energy facilities, and apartment buildings as part of its long-range drone campaign.
Russia responded by intensifying strikes on Ukraine’s energy and port infrastructure, as well as vessels it says are carrying military equipment. The Kremlin has described the operations as retaliatory, arguing that Kiev has “opened Pandora’s box.”
