A dead bird is inspected by volunteers after several tons of tar which floated onto Israel's shores from an unknown source have already caused massive damage to local wildlife.
(photo credit: AVSHALOM SASSONI/MAARIV)
Sources in the defense establishment said they were not familiar with Gamliel’s claim that the oil spill was the result of terrorism
Iran intentionally polluted the Mediterranean Sea and Israel’s shores in an act of ecological terrorism, causing the greatest environmental disaster in Israel’s history, Environmental Protection Minister Gila Gamliel said on Wednesday.
“This pollution has people who are responsible for it and have to pay the price. Our nature is damaged, our animals are harmed, thanks to merciless environmental criminals,” Gamliel said.
The ship remained within tens of kilometers of Israel’s shores, within Israel’s economic waters, for nearly a full day, spilling large amounts of oil on February 1-2, with its AIS off.
Then it continued on to Syria, where it turned on its transmitter, and it returned to Iran, turning off its AIS as it passed Israel. It is currently in Iran.
The tar reached Israeli shores on February 17. From an article in The Jerusalem Post Read the rest of the article here
“Now we see Iran is not just terrorizing [Israel] with [attempts at attaining] nuclear weapons and entrenching itself in our region, but also by harming the environment,” Gamliel said. “They’re not just hurting Israel. Nature and animals don’t just belong to one nation. This is a battle that crosses borders.”
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