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Israeli-Ukrainian Yuri Shvidky taken captive when Russians seized cargo ship in Romanian waters.
By Pesach Benson, United With Israel
Israel’s Foreign Ministry is working to secure the freedom of an Israeli sailor detained by the Russian Navy.
Yuri Shvidky was working aboard the Princess Nicole, a cargo ship transporting corn when it was seized by the Russian Navy on Saturday.
Shvidky, a father of two, holds dual Israeli-Ukrainian citizenship.
Family members described to Ynet Shvidky’s last contact.
“My brother texted us that he has been detained by the Russian, that he was taken to land, and he has no clue where he is. He hasn’t written us since,” Semion Shvidky told Ynet.
“I am worried sick because the Russians are shooting people and we don’t know what may happen to him,” Shvidky said.
The Princess Nicole was in the Black Sea, in Romanian territorial waters at the time. The ship was towed to the Crimean port city of Sevastopol, where Russia has a naval base. The Maritime Bulletin reported that the ship was en route to Constanta, Romania from Ukraine.
Ukrainian authorities said that the Princess Nicole “was approached by Russian warships and made an illogical and sharp change of course.”
According to the website BalticShipping, the Princess Nicole is a Ukrainian flagged vessel owned by Beirut-based GMZ Ship Management.
That same day, the Russian Navy also seized the Afina in Romanian waters. It too is a Ukrainian-flagged cargo ship.
According to the Ukrinform news site, the Russians are holding “nearly 50 civilians” from the two ships. Reports didn’t indicate the sailors’ nationalities.
The Ukrainian government denounced the Russian seizures as “pirate acts.”
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