Ship carrying nearly 270 people capsizes off northern Cyprus, several dead and dozens missing

A passenger vessel sailing from Kyrenia in Cyprus to the Turkish port of Taşucu capsized around midday on Sunday off the coast of northern Cyprus. Turkey's Interior Ministry said 259 passengers and eight crew members were aboard when the ship began taking on water roughly 6 km from Kyrenia.

Kyrenia's mayor, Murat Senkul, called the situation "very serious" in a Facebook post and said a rescue operation was under way. Tufan Erhürman, president of the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, told CNN Turk that 244 people had been reached so far, of whom seven had died and 23 remained missing.

Footage circulating on social media appeared to show passengers in life jackets sitting atop the overturned hull awaiting rescue. The cause of the sinking has not yet been established.

The office of Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides said in a statement that the Republic of Cyprus has the resources, operational capacity and readiness to provide immediate assistance, stressing that all available means would be used to protect human life. The situation remains developing, with details still being confirmed.