ISTANBUL: A Turkish navy vessel equipped with a deep-diving drone arrived off northern Cyprus on Tuesday, seeking answers from the sunken wreckage of a deadly weekend ferry accident, officials said. The ferry capsized several nautical miles from the port en route to the Turkish mainland, with all eight of the victims Turkish nationals, officials said. Rescuers in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), which is only recognised by Ankara, have been searching for the last 20 who are still unaccounted for.
TRNC prime minister Unal Ustal said a Turkish naval vessel equipped with an underwater drone — or ROV (remotely operated vehicle) capable of descending to depths up to 1,000 metres — had arrived during the morning. TRNC officials say the wreckage lies at a depth of 514 metres. "Our top priority is to locate the missing," Ustal said in remarks quoted by the official TAK news agency. He had on Monday said 18 of the missing were Turkish nationals while the last two were from Northern Cyprus.
Police detained the ferry's captain and 15 others, nine of whom appeared in court in Kyrenia, or Girne in Turkish, on Monday charged with negligent homicide as Northern Cyprus began three days of mourning. — AFP
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