Ukraine War20 July, 20263 min read
Russian Missile Strikes Kill Five Syrian Sailors Aboard GOLDEN LEO Near Odessa
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Missile strike on GOLDEN LEO off Odesa killed Syrian sailors; toll disputed. Syria condemns attacks on ships carrying Syrian crews in Black Sea ports.
Golden Leo attack
Russian missile strikes hit the merchant vessel GOLDEN LEO in the Black Sea as it was leaving the Ukrainian sea lane loaded with grain, killing five Syrian sailors and leaving seven other Syrian sailors surviving, according to local Syrian outlets and the list of Syrian victims. The Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority announced a final toll of ten lives, including a Ukrainian maritime pilot, while eight others were rescued by search teams and brought ashore, and five remained missing, as the vessel flew the Guinea-Bissau flag and belonged to a Turkish company.
Ukrainian authorities said the ship had 17 sailors from Syria and India, plus one Ukrainian maritime pilot, and the Ukrainian Navy said three Russian cruise missiles of the Kh-59 and Kh-69 types struck the starboard side of the ship's superstructure, igniting a fire that rescue teams later brought under control. In parallel, the Syrian General Authority for Ports and Customs condemned the targeting of merchant ships with Syrian crews, describing it as a violation of international law and a threat to maritime safety, and it called for an independent international investigation and accountability for those responsible.
Kyiv-Moscow escalation
Aajeg reported that ten sailors were killed when Russian forces struck an international cargo ship in the Black Sea off the southern coast of the Ukrainian city of Odessa, while fires broke out in buildings in Moscow following the Ukrainian strike. Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky said the ship, flying the flag of Guinea-Bissau, departed the port loaded with corn and had a crew of 17 sailors from India and Syria, plus one Ukrainian, and he added that eight crew members were rescued while five remained missing.
Reuters was cited in Al-Jazeera Net as saying the death toll from the Russian attack on a ship near Odesa rose to 10, while Ukrainian officials spoke of eight people rescued, and the Ukrainian Navy said Russia launched three cruise missiles at the vessel Golden Leo. Al-Jazeera Net also reported that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibyha said on X that the ship’s crew included members from Syria and India, while Moscow did not publicly comment on the attack.
Syria calls for probe
Islam Times and Al-Madina’s related reporting both framed the Syrian response as condemnation of repeated attacks on merchant ships carrying sailors and crews in Ukrainian ports and nearby areas of the Black Sea, calling them a serious violation of international law and international humanitarian law. Islam Times said the authority called for an independent and transparent international investigation to determine the circumstances of these attacks, identify those responsible, and ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable, while it reaffirmed the rights of the affected Syrian sailors and crews and the families of victims to legal protection, fairness, and due compensation.
Al-Madina’s account added that the statement urged all concerned parties to fully comply with the provisions of international law and international humanitarian law and the rules of safety and navigation at sea, while calling on companies and merchant ships employing Syrian sailors to exercise the highest degree of caution and avoid sailing or docking in areas witnessing military actions or direct security threats. The same Al-Madina reporting also placed the new incident in a broader pattern, saying the statement comes after the killing and injury of a number of Syrian sailors last week in an attack on a merchant vessel at the Ukrainian port of Odessa, with the Syrian Seafarers’ Union saying four Syrian sailors were killed and four others injured.