The European Union expressed "concern" on Monday over an attack on a Turkish cargo ship off the coast of Libya's port city of Tobruk, in which a Turkish officer was killed and several crewmembers were injured on Sunday.
European Commission spokeswoman Catherine Ray told reporters in Brussels on Monday, "We are concerned about what we have read and our sympathies go (to those affected) over the reported loss of life and injury but at this stage we are investigating further information."
The ship was first attacked by artillery fire and was targeted again in two separate airstrikes, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Monday.
"The Tuna-1 ship flagged with the Cook Islands was attacked in international waters about 13 miles [21 kilometers] off the coast of Tobruk, when it was carrying a drywall cargo from Spain," the ministry said in a statement.
When the ship tried to leave the region after the artillery attack, it came under two separate airstrikes that resulted in the death of a Turkish citizen, who was the ship's third officer; other crew members also received injuries, the statement added.
"We wish God's mercy on our citizen who lost his life. We strongly condemn this heinous attack perpetrated against a civilian ship in international waters and we curse the attackers," the statement said.
Turkey protested the "atrocious attack" with the Libyan authorities and demanded an immediate end to attacks on its affected ship and other Turkish ships in the region.
Turkey will also take legal action against those responsible for the attack in accordance with international law. Turkey also reserves the right to demand compensation, the statement added.
The United Nations on Monday also condemned an attack against a Turkish cargo ship in international waters near the coast of Libya.
Earlier in the day, the Foreign Ministry confirmed that the vessel had been shelled off the coast of Libya's port city of Tobruk, which is the seat of the government of the fractious country.
The U.N. mission in Libya, known as UNSMIL, called for a thorough investigation of the circumstances surrounding the attack. "UNSMIL urges all military actors in Libya to exercise caution in the conduct of their operations and to undertake all necessary measures to avoid targeting civilians and civilian objects and facilities in the ongoing conflict."U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq also told Anadolu Agency that Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was "concerned" about the incident, in which one sailor was killed and other crew members injured.
At the U.N.'s daily press briefing at its New York headquarters, Haq had said similar attacks are a cause for concern about "efforts to ensure safe seas take place in the Mediterranean."
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