Passenger ferry, Russian ship collide off Istanbul

ISTANBUL, Aug 13 (Reuters) Thirty people were injured when a passenger ferry and a Russian cargo ship collided in the sea off Istanbul today, private broadcaster CNN Turk reported.

Coastguard Deputy General Manager Faruk Yarsel told Reuters the accident did not affect traffic in the Bosphorus Strait, a major shipping route used by international oil tankers.

He could not give details on the number of people injured in the collision but said no one had been killed.

After the collision, which took place in the Marmara Sea south of Istanbul, the passenger ferry returned to its dock and all passengers left the vessel, Yarsel said.

REUTERS SKB ND1550