Drones hit two ships in NATO member Bulgaria's Black Sea zone as crew go missing after one vessel sinks

From the Newshound archive · first published 5 October 2026 · last updated 6 October 2026.

Two Turkish-owned cargo ships have been struck by drone attacks within Bulgaria's Black Sea economic zone, prompting the Bulgarian prime minister to call an emergency security meeting. The Alfa Watan went down and her crew cannot be accounted for, while the Able caught fire and its 18-strong crew, some injured, were rescued by a Bulgarian ferry.

Bulgaria's Rumen Radev has called emergency talks with defence, interior and security chiefs and is expected to make a statement on Tuesday.

The Alfa Watan, sailing under a Togo flag and bound for Romania, last pinged roughly 70 nautical miles off Bulgaria's coast just after 2am local time.

The attack comes a day after a vessel was reportedly sunk near Romania, raising fears of a major escalation in the Black Sea.