Black Sea shipping gridlock: 31 crew lost as drone attacks halt trade

The cargo ship HS Dignity was sinking in the Black Sea when the crew of 16 Syrian and Egyptian nationals saw a boat approaching in the dark. Chief Officer Ashraf Mamdouh, 42, thought rescuers had arrived. He was wrong. The vessel was another drone. It struck the ship, and the crew abandoned the 123 meter hull. Eleven people are missing. Five survived.

This incident is part of a widening maritime conflict. Maritime risk firm Ambrey has recorded more than 500 attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov this year. The firm attributes 40 of the 45 attacks in October to Russia. Russian officials have acknowledged striking dozens of ships, claiming they supported Ukraine. The attacks have forced a near halt in traffic through the corridor, with strikes occurring off the coasts of NATO members Bulgaria and Romania.

Shipping companies are reacting to the risk. Demre İşcen, chief financial officer of Turkey-based ED Shipping, stated that the company has laid up 19 of its 26 vessels. İşcen said the company is losing millions of dollars each month. One ED vessel, the Circon, was hit in the Sea of Azov on June 5, killing two crew members. Ukraine said it targeted ships carrying stolen grain and military cargo. İşcen disputed this, saying the ship was bound for Russian grain.

The human cost is concentrated among specific nationalities. Khaldoun Nabelsi, head of the Syrian Seafarers Association of the U.K., has counted at least 18 Syrian seafarers killed. Nabelsi noted that while no one is forced into the work, economic pressure often drives the decision. The Philippine government has barred its citizens from boarding vessels in the northern Black Sea. On Friday, a search and rescue operation was underway for a Comoros-flagged ship hit just outside Romanian waters. One of its 13 crew members has been recovered, and three remain missing. Romanian President Nicușor Dan blamed Russia for that strike.

Mamdouh and his surviving crewmates are currently in Bulgaria, waiting for new documents to return home. He said he will not return to the Black Sea. The father of missing 18-year-old Hamza Suleiman, Basel, said his son called on October 12 to say they were in Bulgaria. Hamza was on his first voyage. Mamdouh told the father he last saw Hamza in a life jacket.

NATO has deployed more patrol boats and radar to the area. The war between Russia and Ukraine has expanded into a key shipping lane. The strikes have left 31 seafarers dead or missing this month.