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The Greek Police has arrested a Palestinian man, suspected of being a part of Hamas, and planning to attack the 'Crown Iris' on June 8, 2026. The 37-year-old man was working in a hotel on the island of Crete, from where the police nabbed him. The man had arrived in Greece from Gaza a year ago and was given asylum. He has two children in Gaza and was recruited by Hamas while he was living there. The man is also being investigated for travelling to Malaysia to receive training for making explosives. Searches conducted in his home in Crete and Athens revealed several mobile phones, laptops, hard drives and bank cards. Police also seized lab equipment and chemicals that could be used for making a bomb. He was also said to have connections with a cell of four other Palestinians recently arrested in Cyprus for illicit activities.

The lifeboat ' Bernhard Gruben' of the Hooksiel station of the DGzRS was called out on the night of February 7, 2026, to assist a woman with a medical emergency aboard the 'MSC Poesia'. On the way from Southampton to Hamburg, a passenger suddenly lost sight in one eye. Rapid transport to a specialized clinic was essential. Helicopters could not fly due to the risk of icing in the cold. The MRCC Bremen deployed the lifeboat. The "MSC Poesia" was located north of the East Frisian Islands at the time. As the lifeboat set sail at full speed, the cruise ship headed towards it. The two vessels rendezvoused north of the island of Langeoog at approximately 10:30 p.m. Relatively calm sea conditions for the area, with waves of about one meter, allowed for the safe transfer of the patient from the cruise ship to the lifeboat, which then returned to Hooksiel at a speed of 24 knots. Around midnight, the requested ambulance arrived at the port almost simultaneously. It took the patient to a specialized clinic in Hooksiel. Report with photos: https://www.seenotretter.de/aktuelles/seenotfaelle/naechtlicher-medizinischer-notfall

The 'Contship Jet', which was operating under charter to ZIM, has sunk about 12 hours after being attacked by sea drones, after drifting southwards off Schabla, in the night of Oct 28 at around midnight. None of the 18 crew member were injured. They arrived at the port of Varna on the evening, and the joint rescue operation has concluded. It had involved emergency rescue services, the Maritime Administration, the Navy, the Air Force, and the Bulgarian Border Police. The ship's owner had arranged a hotel for the seafarers through his agent in the city. The crew was to undergo medical examinations. 20 of the containers had gone overboard and were adrift at sea. The cargo contained various fuels and other hazardous materials. The Ministry of Environment and Water has launched an investigation into possible pollution of the Black Sea following the incident. So far, however, no visible pollution has been found. According to the submitted cargo manifest, the transported goods included lithium-ion batteries, corrosive liquids and acids, flammable liquids, ethanol solutions, household chemicals, and plastics. Teams from the Directorate of Water Management took seawater samples at five locations along the coast - Durankulak, Shabla, Cape Kaliakra, Byala, and Sozopol - on Oct 29. Judging by its appearance, the unmanned vessel, which sank the container ship, appeared to be a new model that has not previously been seen publicly in the Black Sea. A French reconnaissance aircraft monitored the attack. One sea drone - a matte black, 5-6 meter-long unmanned surface vehicle (USV)- was approaching the vessel at high speed. It was driving alongside the vessel, before turning towards its hull. Its maneuvers indicated it was controlled remotely. The authorities in Bulgaria and Romania had spent more than a month trying to determine what types of unmanned craft have been sinking ships. At least six ships have been attacked by drones off Bulgaria this month, and about two dozen seafarers are feared dead, according to government statements. The USV in the latest case was likely a variant of, or derived from, the Russian Murena-300S design, according to Tomas Alexa, a senior analyst at Ambrey Analytics. Reports with photos and video: https://www.maritimedanmark.dk/containerskib-sunket-ud-for-bulgarian https://maritime-executive.com/article/zim-confirms-loss-of-containership-attacked-in-black-sea-off-bulgaria https://www.euronews.com/2026/11/02/watch-unseen-images-of-drone-sinking-greek-tanker-off-bulgarian-coast https://rtnmedios.com/internacional/iran-presuntamente-hunde-buque-ligado-a-naviera-israeli-desata-sospechas-por-el-uso-de-drones-en-el-mar-negro/ https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/greek-container-ship-sinks-after-drone-attack-off-bulgaria-2026-10-29/ https://www.farodevigo.es/mar/2026/10/30/hundido-mar-negro-buque-mercante-135913016.html https://x.com/InsiderGeo/status/2115736232781050092/video/1 https://twitter.com/i/status/2115789491524812815 https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BzmG6VVNs/

Almost one month after having been severely damaged in a drone attack in the Black Sea, the 'Arina A' was towed as a dead ship through the Istanbul Strait by the 'Kurtarma 10' and four assisting tugs of the General Directorate of Coastal Safety on Nov 3. The strait traffic was suspended in both directions during the passage for safety reasons. The ship was taken to the shipyard area in Yalova for repairs.

The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas mobilised the 'Salvamar Acrux' on the night of Nov 2 for the rescue of 53 Maghrebi individuals from a precarious vessel, which was located about 16 nautical miles east of Lanzarote. They were taken to Arrecife. The SAR helicopter Helimer 211 was also mobilised to assist. The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife coordinated a rescue operation on the morning of Nov 3 for one cayuco off La Restinga. it was assisted by the 'Salvamar Navia' to the port with 59 Sub-Saharan individuals on board. The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Cádiz mobilised the 'Salvamar Suhail' to a patera, which was located about 4.6 nautical miles southwest of Puerto América (Cádiz). The SAR boat transferred its 41 occupants to Puerto América.

The Armas Mead family has reached an agreement with Baleària to terminate the charter contract for the 'Ciudad de Ibiza , after it has been sold to the Jordanian company Arab Bridge Maritime (ABM), which was already the owner of the ferries 'Amman', formerly the 'Manuel Azaña', and the 'Sinaa', formerly the 'Volcán de Tejeda' —, with the delivery being scheduled for the end of September 2026. Baleària planned to assume the labour liabilities, so the crew members, who were affected by the sale of the vessel, would be reassigned to the fleet of the Group led by Adolfo Utor. In recent months, the 'Ciudad de Ibiza' has covered the cargo service between the two Canary capitals. Everything indicated that it did not fit well into other Baleària routes, so, given the opportunity for sale that has arisen, the parties have reached a friendly agreement to terminate the contract, along with job security. Arab Bridge Maritime purchased the ship from Trasmediterránea in October and was operating it under Jordanian ownership as 'Al Jisr'. It arrived in Alexandria on Oct 24.

The Brasilian authorities have seized approximately 33 kg of cocaine concealed in a submerged compartment of the 'Omicron Atlas', which was docked at the Port of Santos, on Oct 27, 2026. The operation was carried out by Brasil’s Federal Police (PF) in cooperation with the Brasilian Navy. Divers from the Federal Police and the Navy’s Southern-Southeastern Naval Patrol Group discovered the narcotics during an underwater inspection of the vessel. The cocaine was hidden inside a compartment below the waterline. Divers retrieved a package containing multiple tablets of the substance, which was subsequently transferred to the Federal Police headquarters in Santos for forensic examination. Laboratory testing confirmed that the seized material was cocaine. The vessel had arrived from India and was destined for Singapore. However, investigators have not yet determined where the narcotics were loaded onto the ship or the intended destination of the consignment. The Federal Police has launched an investigation to establish how the drugs were concealed aboard the vessel, identify those responsible, and determine whether organised criminal groups involved in international narcotics trafficking were linked to the shipment. The seizure formed part of ongoing efforts by Brasilian law enforcement and maritime authorities to counter the growing use of commercial shipping vessels by transnational criminal organisations seeking to move illicit drugs between continents. The ship left Santos on Oct 28 and anchored off the port in pos. 24° 06' N 046° 14' W, where it remained stationary as of Nov 3. Report with photo: https://world-border-congress.com/cocaine-seized-from-submerged-compartment-of-merchant-vessel-at-port-of-santos/

Due to a planned nationwide strike and protest action, the 'MSC Preziosa' has cancelled an upcoming port call in Le Havre on Nov 5, 2026. Instead, the ship extended its visit to Zeebrugge. where it arrived on Nov 4. With the strike expected to disrupt port operations and transport across France, the ship stayed overnight in Zeebrugge, departing at 6:00 p.m. on Nov 5 instead of 6:00 p.m. on Nov 4 as planned. Guests were alerted to the change in a notice signed by Captain Francesco Iacono on Nov 3, 2026.

The 'Shelekhov' was detained for the second time within little more than a month, this time on Oct 21 in Trabzon with 14 deficiencies 1) Certificate & Doc - Documents of compliance Not as required 2) Certificate & Doc - Signs and inducations Not as required 3) Pollution Prevention - Oil and oily mixture from machinery spaces Not as required 4) Pollution Prevention - Ballast Water Not as required 5) Pollution Prevention - Other (Marpol Annex I) Other 6) Emergency system - Fire drills Lack of training 7) Radio communications - MF / HF Radio installations Not as required 8)) Life saving appliances - Inflatable liferafts Not as required 9) Life saving appliances - Lifeboats Not ready for use 10) Fire safety - Fire doors/openings in fire resisting division Not as required 11) Living and working - Ropes and wires Not as required 12) Structural conditions - Decks - corrosion Corroded 13) Structural conditions - Other (structural conditions Other 14) ISM - Ism certificate Not as required The vessel was released again on Nov 2. The last detentions were on Sep 5 in Tuapse with ten deficiencies for six days and on Jan 24, 2025 in Karasu with 22 deficiencies, for five days. https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17uqj6JoZb/

On the night of Nov 1, 2026, the 'Largo Atom', enroute from Mina al Ahmadi to Jebel Ali with an ETA as of Nov 3, was hit by two projectiles about 70 nautical miles to the east of Ras Al Khafji, at the northwest end of the Arabian Gulf. All crew members were accounted for. After the tanker was hit by two UAVs, it suffered a complete loss of power. The tanker 'Grit' (IMO: 9243150) was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz on Nov 3, 2026. All crew members aboard the vessel were safe, and no pollution was observed. Two unknown projectiles struck the tanker at around 7:00 p.n. UTC, about 14 nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman.

On Oct 7, 2026, the 'Arina A', which had been targeted by a drone attack in the Black Sea, during which the bridge and parts of the superstructure burnt out, was spotted off the coast of Trabzon. The ship, which had departed Istanbul and was en route to Russia, had been hit by a drone in the Black Sea in September. Captain Dmitry Zhitin, one of the 25 crew members on board, lost his life during the attack. Following the incident, the crew was evacuated to Trabzon by teams from the Trabzon Coast Guard Group Command. The body of Captain Dmitry Zhitin was taken to the Trabzon Forensic Medicine Institute for an autopsy and was subsequently handed over to Russian Federation authorities once the procedures were completed. The Trabzon Chief Public Prosecutor's Office was conducting an investigation into the incident. Report with photos: https://www.haber61.net/trabzon/karadeniz-de-olumcul-dron-saldirisina-ugramisti-arina-a-trabzon-aciklarinda/645559

The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas mobilised the 'Salvamar Acrux' on the night of Nov 2 for the rescue of 53 Maghrebi individuals from a precarious vessel, which was located about 16 nautical miles east of Lanzarote. They were taken to Arrecife. The SAR helicopter Helimer 211 was also mobilised to assist. The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife coordinated a rescue operation on the morning of Nov 3 for one cayuco off La Restinga. it was assisted by the 'Salvamar Navia' to the port with 59 Sub-Saharan individuals on board. The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Cádiz mobilised the 'Salvamar Suhail' to a patera, which was located about 4.6 nautical miles southwest of Puerto América (Cádiz). The SAR boat transferred its 41 occupants to Puerto América.

The Jordan-based Arab Bridge Maritime has acquired the 'Cotentin' from Brittany Ferries. The vessel was one of two RoPax ferries that Brittany Ferries announced in June would leave its fleet. It became surplus on the Cherbourg–Rosslare route, where it wasreplaced by another vessel, while Brittany Ferries’ oldest RoPax, the 1992-built 'Barfleur, became redundant following the closure of the Cherbourg–Poole route and temporarily replaced the 'Cotentin' between Cherbourg and Rosslare. Brittany Ferries attributed the fleet reduction to rising costs associated with the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) and increased financing costs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Arab Bridge Maritime formally took delivery of the 'Cotentin' in Cherbourg on Oct 19, 2026, when the ferry was renamed 'Nefertiti' and transferred from the French to the Jordanian flag. It became by far Arab Bridge Maritime’s largest RoPax in terms of freight capacity. Arab Bridge Maritime had also acquired the 'Ciudad de Ibiza' from Spain’s Trasmediterránea and renamed it 'Al Jisr'. Attica Holdings RoPax 'Lefka Ori', now renamed 'Daleela Express', was also sold to a company with a registered CO-address at Arab Ship Management, the ISM manager for Arab Bridge Maritime’s fleet. Arab Bridge Maritime announced record profits for the first nine months of the year, and said another RoPax was set to join its fleet alongside a capacity expansion on the Safaga–Duba corridor between Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Following the acquisition of the 'Cotentin', Arab Bridge Maritime’s fleet now comprised of 12 vessels, consisting of five RoPax ferries, three RoRo vessels and four high-speed ferries.

Maersk announced that the 'Spirit of Melbourne', operating on its OCEANIA service, has been renamed 'TW Vijay' on Oct 27, 2026, due to a change in ownership. The carrier requested customers note this vessel name change for their records and future reference.

The U.S. Coast Guard has detained the 'MSC Poesia' in Miami on November 1, 2026, for an extended inspection, verifying compliance with international standards and U.S. regulations. Two days after the vessel was detained, MSC Cruises has cancelled the scheduled cruise on Nov 3. The 'MSC Poesia' had to remain in Miami until the deficiencies identified by the Coast Guard were addressed. The passengers may remain on board until Nov 5 at noon. The cruise fare would be fully refunded; in addition, passengers received compensation in the form of a travel voucher equal to the amount paid for the cruise, as well as reimbursement for any additional costs incurred from an early return home. The deficiencies were discovered in certain shipboard systems. Despite intensive efforts, it could not be resolved in time, making it impossible to proceed with the cruise. In April 2026, the ship passed a hygiene inspection conducted by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) with a score of 97 out of 100 points. Following its Alaska season, the 'MSC Poesia' transited the Panama Canal and arrived in Miami in mid-October—marking its third time docking there since Oct 17. The ship was scheduled to depart Miami on the evening of Nov 1 for an 11-night Caribbean cruise, with its first port call in Jamaica set for the morning of Nov 2.

Two weeks after the fire started aboard the 'Espirito Santos Express', carriers have advised customers that they expected the vast majority of the cargo to be either severely damaged by the fire or a total loss. Salvage teams were meanwhole making progress with the fire as well as with another containership, the 'HMM Platinum', which reported a fire around the same time. The container ship was operating under charter to Hapag-Lloyd on a shared route with Ocean Network Express. The full details on the fire were not released by claims consultant WK Webster. The 28 crew members had evacuated the ship on Oct 15, approximately 975 nautical miles northwest of Tristan da Cunha. The crew was rescued by the passing bulk carrier 'Aeolian Arrow', whose the chief officer was thrown overboard from the rescue boat, and the rescue boat was subsequently swamped and lost. Efforts to recover the officer were unsuccessful. Both Hapag and ONE reported that the owners, Seaspan, have advised them the fire remained under control. A team from SMIT had reached the drifting vessel. On Oct 28, Webster had advised it understood the vessel was still ablaze. The Brasilian offshore support vessels 'Maersk Topper' and 'StarNav Delphinus' were deployed to battle the blaze. The Danish tug 'Navvik Leader' took the 'Espirito Santo Express' under tow toward a port of refuge in Brasil. The 'HMM Platinum' has meanwhile anchored off Durban after a fire on board, which had started around the end of September, while the ship was navigating off the southern coast of Lavanono, Madagascar. The vessel was also bound for Brasil, when the fire began. Reports indicated that there were approximately 2,300 TEU aboard. HMM had reported the fire had been controlled, working with a salvage team from SMIT. However, the vessel was delayed by weather and had moved away from South Africa while tugs remained with it as a precaution. The crew was reported to be safe, and the ship appeared to be waiting for space in Durban so that it could complete its survey to determine the full extent of the damage.

The 'Grit' was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz on Nov 3, 2026. All crew members aboard the vessel were safe, and no pollution was observed. Two unknown projectiles struck the tanker at around 7:00 p.n. UTC, about 14 nautical miles northeast of Limah, Oman. On Nov 1, another tanker, the Liberian-flagged 'Largo Atom' (IMO 1034747), was also hit by two unknown projectiles about 72 nautical miles East of Ras Al Khafji.

The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Las Palmas mobilised the 'Salvamar Acrux' on the night of Nov 2 for the rescue of 53 Maghrebi individuals from a precarious vessel, which was located about 16 nautical miles east of Lanzarote. They were taken to Arrecife. The SAR helicopter Helimer 211 was also mobilised to assist. The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Tenerife coordinated a rescue operation on the morning of Nov 3 for one cayuco off La Restinga. it was assisted by the 'Salvamar Navia' to the port with 59 Sub-Saharan individuals on board. The CCS of Salvamento Marítimo in Cádiz mobilised the 'Salvamar Suhail' to a patera, which was located about 4.6 nautical miles southwest of Puerto América (Cádiz). The SAR boat transferred its 41 occupants to Puerto América.

The sale of the 'Lefka Ori' was announced on Sep 30 by the Attica company, for a total price of 8.3 million euros. The sale resulted in a profit of 4.9 million euros, which would be recognised in the results of the second half of 2026. The ferry completed its voyages on the Aegean routes on Sep 15, while on Sep 20 it made its last voyage from the port of Piraeus to Rhodes and then to Limassol, where it arrived on Sep 24. The ship is the former 'Blue Horizon', the name of which was associated with the tragic death of the 36-year-old Antonis Kargiotis in Sep 2023 in the port of Piraeus, when crew members left him helpless to drown at sea. The ship was renamed 'Daleela Express' after ot was sold to a company with a registered CO-address at Arab Ship Management, the ISM manager for Arab Bridge Maritime’s fleet. It arrived in Suez on Oct 6 and departed for Jeddah on Oct 19, where it arrived on Oct 25.

Two weeks after the fire started aboard the 'Espirito Santos Express', carriers have advised customers that they expected the vast majority of the cargo to be either severely damaged by the fire or a total loss. Salvage teams were meanwhole making progress with the fire as well as with another containership, the 'HMM Platinum', which reported a fire around the same time. The containership was operating under charter to Hapag-Lloyd on a shared route with Ocean Network Express. The full details on the fire were not released by claims consultant WK Webster. The 28 crew members had evacuated the ship on Oct 15, approximately 975 nautical miles northwest of Tristan da Cunha. The crew was rescued by the passing bulk carrier 'Aeolian Arrow', whose the chief officer was thrown overboard from the rescue boat, and the rescue boat was subsequently swamped and lost. Efforts to recover the officer were unsuccessful. Both Hapag and ONE reported that the owners, Seaspan, have advised them the fire remaied under control. A team from SMIT had reached the drifting vessel. On Oct 28, Webster had advised it understood the vessel was still ablaze. It would take considerable time to bring the vessel into a port of refuge and assess the damage in more detail. There was no word on whether the fire started in the containers. The 'HMM Platinum' has anchored off Durbanon Oct 28 after a fire on board, which had started around the end of September, while the ship was navigating off the southern coast of Lavanono, Madagascar. The vessel was also bound for Brasil, when the fire began. Reports indicated that there were approximately 2,300 TEU aboard. HMM had reported the fire had been controlled, working with a salvage team from SMIT. However, the vessel was delayed by weather and had moved away from South Africa while tugs remained with it as a precaution. The crew was reported to be safe, and the ship appeared to be waiting for space in Durban so that it could complete its survey to determine the full extent of the damage.