Turkish Owner and Crew File War Crimes Complaint Over Ukrainian Ship Attack
A Turkish shipowner, along with the family of a crewmember who was killed in a Ukrainian attack and the surviving crewmembers, took the unusual step of filing a war crimes complaint. According to Turkey Today, the filing was made in The Hague with the International Criminal Court, an intergovernmental organization established in 2002 to investigate and potentially prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The filing relates to the July 22 attack on the Turkish-flagged bulker Reyhan Sari (36,075 dwt), which was struck in the Black Sea near the Russian port of Novorossiysk. According to the complaint, seen by the Turkish media outlet Haber Denzde, a 54-year-old sailor working in the engine room, Savas Cakar, was killed. Several others among the 15 crewmembers were also injured in the attack. The ship, however, was able to proceed to Turkey.
The vessel, built in 2011, had been acquired by the Turkish company T&O Denizcilik in 2023. They report the ship had loaded coal in the Russian port of Taman and was transporting the cargo to Turkey when it was struck by an aerial drone.
They are alleging that Ukraine deliberately struck the ship specifically in the accommodation area with the intent to kill civilians. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that the attack constitutes crimes against humanity and also asserts that illegal cluster munitions were used with armor-piercing capabilities.
The court has an established process for handling these types of complaints. Prosecutors will examine the filing and the supporting evidence to determine if there is enough information to proceed. They will also consider if the alleged crimes meet the defined thresholds of the court’s mandate and if the complaint falls within the jurisdiction of the court. If it meets all these requirements, prosecutors would decide if they want to begin a formal investigation and if there is sufficient evidence of the crimes. They could then elect to move it forward to judicial proceedings at the court based in the Hague.
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Turkey has been calling for a de-escalation of hostilities and specifically the targeting of merchant ships by both Russia and Ukraine. It has also put forward several proposals for a truce to protect Black Sea shipping. While the previous efforts have not been accepted, a Turkish official told the French AFP news agency that they have sent a proposal to Russia and Ukraine that would end attacks on civilian ships in the Black Sea.
AFP reports that international data shows that at least 25 Turkish vessels have been struck since hostilities intensified in June. Turkey notes that it was instrumental in establishing the grain corridor with the United Nations in 2022, and it continues to seek a path toward mediation of the conflict.
