Posted
Special operation units of the Turkish navy were busy on Saturday morning around a mine which would contain 30 kg of explosive, according to the NTV channel.
Old-fashioned mines may lack safety systems and present a hazard
AFP
A mine that broke its mooring and was carried by the waves was detected at the entrance located on the Black Sea side of the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul. According to the private Turkish channel NTV, a fisherman spotted this mine 2 km off Rumelifeneri, in the north of Istanbul. The man alerted the authorities on Saturday morning.
“Turkish Navy special operation units were dispatched to the scene following the discovery of a mine-like object,” the statement said. on Twitter the Turkish Ministry of Defence. “The object has been placed in a secure location and units have begun their intervention to render it harmless,” the ministry added.
Boats moored nearby have been moved away and the Bosphorus has been temporarily closed to maritime traffic, according to Turkish media. According to NTV, the mine detected would contain 30 kg of explosives and would be an old Russian-made mine.
The Turkish authorities had this week warned of the risk of mines off the Ukrainian coast which might have been unmoored due to a storm, by publishing a message on the NAVTEX maritime warning system. “These mines can drift at sea and present a danger,” the Turkish navy said.
Underwater mines must be equipped with systems that make them harmless if unmoored, according to the 1907 Hague Convention. But older mines may lack such systems and present a danger, according to Turkish media.
(AFP)
