The United Arab Emirates reported an oil spill from a tanker off its coast yesterday, as numerous vessels in Gulf waters come under attack during the Middle East war.
The authorities “detected a tanker oil spill affecting Umm Al Quwain’s beaches,” the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment said in a statement, referring to an emirate north of Dubai.
It said “teams immediately began containment, cordoning, clean-up and remediation... to limit environmental impacts”, adding that all beaches and coastal areas in Umm Al Quwain had been temporarily closed.
Many residents in the north of the country have reported oil smells on social media in recent days, including residents in northern districts of Dubai.
The UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment said in a statement that containment operations had been launched and an environmental assessment was being carried out.
Oil prices traded at five-month highs yesterday, with benchmark crude contract Brent North Sea near $115 a barrel after Tehran threatens retaliatory attacks on Gulf oil and tech facilities.
Frequent attacks on ships have been reported in recent weeks near the Strait of Hormuz, at the heart of the conflict between Iran and the United States.
The British maritime security agency UKMTO reported on October 9 that a vessel had been hit by a projectile off the UAE coast, causing a fire that was later brought under control.
According to the maritime security company Vanguard, the vessel in question was the oil tanker GEM NO.2, sailing under the Panamanian flag.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said on Thursday that four vessels involved in illegal oil transfers in the northern Persian Gulf were simultaneously hit and caught fire after being tracked by its forces on Wednesday.
The IRGC added that three more vessels collided with mines west of the Strait of Hormuz, and warned the US military that continued provocations could lead to a wider response against its regional bases.