Mediterranean oil spill: possible culprit found
Israeli points the finger at Libyan tanker, the Emerald.
The Israeli environmental protection minister, Gila Gamliel, has identified the Libyan state-run tanker, Emerald, as the source of the oil spill that has blighted Israel’s Mediterranean coast in recent weeks.
Gamliel said the Panamanian-flagged Emerald was en route from Iran to Syria when she is alleged to have switched off her AIS transponder upon entering Israeli waters at the beginning of last month
Israel’s Environmental Protection Agency said it had strong circumstantial evidence to support its accusation but did not yet have “forensic evidence” to substantiate the claim.
The oil spill has wrought environmental havoc on the Israeli and Lebanese coasts, with Gamliel describing it as an act of “environmental terrorism”. The company that runs the emerald, General National Maritime Transport Co, has not responded to the allegations.
