On October 5, the cargo vessel “Royad Mammadov,” sailing under the Turkish flag, was subjected to a drone attack in the Black Sea, near the coast of Romania.
Sea-news.az citing “Qafqazinfo” reports that the vessel is allegedly owned by Azerbaijani businessman Mubariz Mansimov. According to data from the “Rynda” vessel tracking portal, “Palmali Gemicilik ve Acentelik” is listed as the ISM manager of the “Royad Mammadov.” The founder of the Palmali Group of Companies is Mubariz Mansimov.
The Palmali Group of Companies has issued an official statement regarding the incident. The company stated that the “Royad Mammadov,” managed by Palmali, came under a drone attack in the Black Sea near Romanian shores while en route from the Ukrainian port of Izmail to the Italian port of Ravenna.
According to the statement, a fire broke out on board following the attack, prompting immediate search and rescue operations to evacuate the crew:
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of two of our seafarers as a result of this tragic incident. The remaining crew members have been safely evacuated to a secure area. We extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of our deceased seafarers.”
It should be noted that according to information released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, as a result of the incident, Azerbaijani citizen and ship captain Rustam Ismail oglu Hasanov was killed, and another Azerbaijani citizen, Mahammad Hamza oglu Suleymanzade, was reported missing. Other Azerbaijani crew members were rescued, with three of them hospitalized.
