Ferry Explosion Kills 21 at Dock in Azerbaijan Port
An explosion apparently caused by a bomb tore through a ferry at the docks of Baku, the Azerbaijan capital, killing at least 21 people and leaving 10 missing, it was reported Thursday.
The blast occurred Wednesday as the ferry Soviet Kalmykia was docking in Baku after crossing the Caspian Sea from Krasnovodsk in Turkmenistan, the Interfax news agency reported.
The former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia have been involved in a bloody ethnic conflict in recent years. The main dispute centers on Nagorno-Karabakh, a predominantly Armenian enclave inside Azerbaijan’s borders.
Of 250 passengers aboard the ferry, seven people were killed instantly, Interfax reported. By Thursday, 14 more had died of injuries, the news agency said, quoting Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry.
At least 40 other people were treated for burns, and 10 people were missing, Interfax reported.
The Interior Ministry said that two parts of a detonator from a bomb were found on the deck of the Soviet Kalmykia, and terrorism was not ruled out as a cause, Interfax reported.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
