Istanbul, March 26: A Turkish crude oil tanker, ‘Altura,’ was targeted in a drone attack in the Black Sea on Thursday morning. According to local media reports, there were no casualties, but the vessel sustained damage. Turkish Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu provided this information.
He stated that the attack occurred near the Bosphorus Strait as the tanker was en route from Russia. Fortunately, all 27 crew members, who are Turkish nationals, are safe.
The minister indicated that the engine room was specifically targeted. He clarified that the attack was not executed by a drone but rather by an unmanned surface vehicle operating at water level.
Uraloglu did not specify whether the attack occurred in Turkish waters. However, Turkish NTV news reported that the tanker, owned by the Turkish company Besiktas, is registered under the flag of Sierra Leone. Ship-tracking data revealed that it had departed from Russia’s Novorossiysk port carrying approximately one million barrels of crude oil and was only about 30 kilometers from the Bosphorus Strait.
The tanker was transporting 140,000 tons of crude oil from Russia. According to the minister, the bridge and engine room of the vessel were damaged, leading to reports of water ingress.
Previously, in December 2025, several other Turkish vessels were reportedly targeted in Russian attacks in the Black Sea. This area remains tense due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. Following some attacks, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against turning the Black Sea into a “zone of confrontation.”
Turkey, whose northern coastline lies between Ukraine and Crimea, has maintained close relations with both Kyiv and Moscow since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
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