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An unmanned surface vessel detected off the coast of Hopa district in Türkiye's northeastern Artvin province was towed to open sea and destroyed in a controlled manner by Underwater Defense (SAS) commandos, officials said Sunday.
Artvin Governor Turan Ergun said the operation had been completed safely.
"As we planned last night, our SAS commandos moved to our district in the morning," Ergun said after the operation.
"They carried out their necessary work and examinations. The vehicle in question was towed to a safe distance in open sea and destroyed. The problem has been resolved," he added.
The vehicle had been detected Saturday off the coast of Hopa and was assessed to be an unmanned surface vessel.
Officials said a report was received at 4:35 p.m. Saturday that a suspicious object had been found near the Sugoren Fishermen's Shelter.
Maritime police carried out underwater imaging of the object and sent photographs to SAS commando teams.
Following assessments, security measures were taken in the area because of the possibility that the vessel could be carrying explosives.
Ergun said authorities acted according to the worst-case scenario because similar incidents had occurred before in the Black Sea, including off Hopa.
"Our SAS commandos focused on the possibility that this could be an unmanned surface vehicle," Ergun said.
"Upon this, because we have experienced examples of this before, and you know this happens from time to time in the Black Sea. In fact, it had happened off Hopa again before," he added.
He said officials took precautions against possible damage, particularly because diesel and gasoline fuels are present at Hopa Port.
Ergun said the object had approached as close as 50 meters to the shore because of wind, prompting authorities to temporarily close a nearby highway to traffic.
He said the road was later reopened in a controlled manner after the object moved about 400 meters offshore.
"Our Coast Guard Station Command is also monitoring it from the sea at a certain distance," he said.
Ergun said a 600-meter net had also been stretched in the area as part of the precautions.
He said SAS commandos were expected to arrive by military aircraft because detonation was a technical matter under their authority.
"There is no cause for concern at this stage," Ergun said before the operation.
"We are already following the situation from here. God willing, as I said, tomorrow we will completely destroy this object by detonating it," he added.
Ergun said there was no evacuation of homes and urged residents not to panic.
"We always take precautions by considering the worst-case scenario," he said.
"I want to state that there is no situation that should cause panic or curiosity among our citizens. There is currently no evacuation of homes," he added.
He said the road could be closed again if needed under the most negative scenario.
SAS teams affiliated with the Naval Forces Command later examined the object and, after completing assessments, towed it to a safe distance in open sea.
The vessel was then destroyed in a controlled manner after security measures were taken in the surrounding area.
Teams carried out an examination in the area after the destruction process was completed.
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