Israel accuses Iran of "environmental terrorism" over oil spill near its shores

Israel is suffering one of the biggest environmental disasters in its history after an oil spill weeks ago in Mediterranean waters affected dozens of kilometres of its coastline. Guila Gamliel, Israel's environmental protection minister, told a press conference that intensive efforts have been underway over the past few days to track down the culprit vessel. She also shared on Twitter that "after we narrowed down the number of suspects in the incident, we discovered that this is not an environmental crime, but environmental terrorism", thus suggesting a harmful intentionality against Israel after the crude oil leak and detailing the vessel responsible as "a pirate ship owned by a Libyan company that left Iran". On Sunday, Israeli authorities had cleared a suspected Greek oil tanker, as well as a dozen other vessels, of any suspicion. "Iran is operating terrorist activities not only by (attempting to possess) nuclear weapons or trying to establish itself on our borders. Iran is generating terrorism by damaging the environment," Gamliel added.

According to the minister, the nearly 20-year-old Libyan ship, named Emerald, switched off its transmissions just before approaching Israeli waters. He said the vessel departed Iran by turning off its automatic identification system (AIS), which transmits its location to other ships in the area. It then turned the AIS on while passing through the Suez Canal, and then turned it off again as it approached the Israeli coast. In his statement, he said that the vessel continued its course to a port in Syria, a country allied with Iran, to deliver its oil cargo before setting off on its return voyage. It was also noted that Emerald entered the Mediterranean Sea on this route for the first time in eight years. 

Reports of pollution initially emerged in mid-February when a 17-metre whale washed up dead off Israel's southern coast, along with other wildlife. Guila Gamliel reiterated that the Israeli government will demand compensation for the environmental damage caused. Despite the minister's statements, Iran's direct and intentional responsibility is doubted by other officials, which would not rule out an accident. A senior Israeli security official, quoted by the Israeli public broadcaster Kan, said that the direct involvement of the Tehran regime in what happened to the ship is not known.

Strong winds and unusually high waves battered the coastline at this time, causing tons of tar to wash up on beaches from Rosh Hanikra, in the north near Lebanon, to Ashkelon, on the border of the Gaza Strip .... The tar has also reached southern Lebanon, whose beaches are affected for miles. According to Israel's environment ministry, "tens to hundreds of tonnes" of crude oil spilled. A total of $13.8 million was approved a week ago by the government to clean up the disaster. A massive clean-up operation was launched immediately after the spill, with thousands of Israelis volunteering to help clean up the shoreline, along with workers from the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and even Israeli Defence Force soldiers. The Environmental Protection Ministry reported on Tuesday that it had already removed some 120 tonnes of sand, debris and other contaminated materials from the northern coastal beaches of Jisr az-Zarqa, Herzliya, Atlit and Palmajim in central Israel.

The Israeli Environmental Protection Ministry said it had "circumstantial" rather than "forensic" evidence that this was the ship behind the spill. It added that it had ruled out any other source. Meanwhile, the head of the naval unit at the Gamliel ministry, Rani Amir, also appeared to cast some doubt on what happened. "We believe that the leak that affected us was not during the transfer of oil from Emerald to smaller ships, but a deliberate leak, i.e. terror, or an accident," Rani Amir said during the press conference. The indictment adds to tensions between Iran and Israel that have escalated over the past few years and have manifested themselves mainly in cyber attacks, high-profile assassinations and proxy fights in neighbouring countries. On Monday, Netanyahu said Iran had attacked an Israeli-owned ship in the Gulf of Oman last week and added that "Iran is Israel's greatest enemy. I am determined to stop it. We are succeeding in the whole region". Iran denied the claim. However, Gamliel did not name the Libyan company that owned the ship or provide further details about Iran's alleged role in the spill.