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Romania investigates the cause of a Black Sea cargo vessel sinking

The Romanian President Nicusor Dan and other authorities confirmed that a merchant ship caught on fire and sank in the Black Sea off the coast of Romania Thursday evening. It is likely to have been 'hit', they said.

The Romanian Border Police confirmed on Friday that a fire had broken out on a commercial vessel sailing through the exclusive economic zone of Romania, but they did not give a cause.

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in full force began in 2022 the Black Sea has been repeatedly targeted, and attacks have accelerated in 2026.

Dan said that the ship had been hit and it "seemed to have sunk" during a press conference held in Chisinau on Thursday. He added that there was no information available at this time as to who could have been responsible for a possible attack.

"There will be a thorough investigation. It?will be determined, but we shouldn't start to speculate," said the?president. He said that the event took place outside of?Romania territorial waters.

The Romanian Border Police announced in a?statement that all 12 people aboard the merchant ship were?rescued.

They said that 10 of these people were rescued, with one being injured, by border guards. Two others?were saved by the crew of a merchant ship. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey; Pawel Florkiewicz and Anna Koper)

(source: Reuters)