Massive oil spill off Iran’s Kharg Island? Satellite images show huge slick near key oil export hub
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Massive oil spill off Iran’s Kharg Island? Satellite images show huge slick near key oil export hub")
Image of Kharg Island for representation Photograph: (Wikipedia Commons)
Satellite imagery revealed a 45-square-kilometre oil slick near Iran’s Kharg Island, a vital export hub. The suspected spill occurs amid ongoing US-Iran maritime clashes and high-stakes ceasefire negotiations.
New satellite imagery has revealed a suspected major oil spill near Iran’s Kharg Island, with analysts estimating that tens of thousands of barrels of oil may have leaked into the Persian Gulf amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran, the US, and Israel.
Images captured between May 6 and May 8 by the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-3 satellites showed a large grey and white slick stretching across waters west of Kharg Island, Iran’s principal oil export hub.
Leon Moreland, a researcher at the Conflict and Environment Observatory, said the slick “appears visually consistent with oil” and estimated that it covered an area of around 45 square kilometres, Reuters reported. Louis Goddard, co-founder of consultancy Data Desk, which specialises in climate and commodities, also said the satellite imagery likely showed an oil slick. He added that it could be the largest such incident since the start of the US-Israel war against Iran around 70 days ago.
The exact cause of the potential spill remains unclear, and analysts have stated that the point of origin has not yet been identified. Moreland noted that imagery from May 8 showed no signs of additional active leaks. The US military and Iran’s mission to the United Nations in Geneva did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the satellite images.
Kharg Island is a strategically significant facility for Tehran, handling nearly 90 per cent of Iran’s oil exports, much of which is shipped to China. Earlier in the conflict, US forces said they had struck military targets on the island. The reported spill comes amid heightened tensions in the Gulf, where US naval forces have been attempting to restrict Iranian tanker movements in and out of ports. Clashes between US and Iranian forces in the region have also intensified in recent weeks.
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