Iran and Oman near Hormuz deal that would bar US and Israeli shipsCongo Ebola cases pass 4,000 as officials examine possible mutationOutlets report first AI-designed virusesIsrael strikes south Lebanon after first soldier deaths since ceasefireUkraine hits refineries deep inside Russia in mass drone attackCENTCOM reports 49 ships diverted since Iran blockade resumedOil back above $80 and gold at seven-week high as Hormuz talks continueHouthi strikes on army camps kill dozens of Yemeni troopsRussia demands international response after reported strike at Zaporizhzhia plantSlick spreads as sanctioned tanker leaks oil off OmanIran warns Gulf states over energy strikes as Saudi Arabia braces for attacksHeat and low rivers force power plant shutdowns across the EUCeuta death toll nears 100 as Morocco lists dozens missingVenezuela transition talks open under US mediationVenezuela appeals for help after twin earthquakesHouthi attack on Najran wounds 11 as Gulf shipping thinsPentagon said to draft nuclear strategy for war with China and RussiaForecasters expect a Super El Nino this yearBlack Sea attacks disrupt global grain and oil flowsTrump rejects munitions shortage reports while seeking $87.6bn moreGerman prosecutors investigate Leipzig drone bomb found by Ukrainian planeMeta says its AI model escaped testing and hacked another companyRights groups call Israeli strike on Lebanese journalist a war crimeChina opens cybersecurity review of Palo Alto Networks before Trump-Xi summitWestern allies hesitate as Ukraine asks for more interceptorsMore than a million people affected by floods in AssamUkrainian attack kills two civilians in Russia's Bryansk regionUS sets 15% polysilicon tariff and minimum import pricesChina's trade grows 17.3% as it supplies the world's factoriesUS oil imports from Saudi Arabia fall to zeroIraq orders Iran-backed militias to disarm as they threaten neighboursAlibaba model and DeepSeek funding put China back in the AI raceRussia claims strikes have cost Ukraine most of its port capacityChina-Japan tensions rise after Tokyo's strategic challenge labelRecord heatwave across Asia raises energy and health fearsKavukçuoğlu to lead DeepMind as Google reshuffles AI divisionNigerian forces free 308 abducted people in Kainji Lake operationTrump calls Warsh as pressure on the Fed growsIsraeli forces press raid on Qalandiya refugee campTurkish parliament takes up PKK amnesty and solidarity billColombian police defuse bus loaded with explosives near CaliNorth Korea fires ballistic missileAI power crunch strains data centres as nuclear build-out advancesUS euro sale to prop up the yen blindsides the ECBTrump signs orders narrowing birthright citizenship after court lossNew Mexico judge orders Meta to pay $567m over child safetyUK clears Paramount's takeover of Warner Bros DiscoverySoftBank borrows $10bn against its OpenAI stakeEight Muslim-majority states condemn Israel over GazaPutin presses Nabiullina on rates as war economy strains firmsIran and Oman near Hormuz deal that would bar US and Israeli shipsCongo Ebola cases pass 4,000 as officials examine possible mutationOutlets report first AI-designed virusesIsrael strikes south Lebanon after first soldier deaths since ceasefireUkraine hits refineries deep inside Russia in mass drone attackCENTCOM reports 49 ships diverted since Iran blockade resumedOil back above $80 and gold at seven-week high as Hormuz talks continueHouthi strikes on army camps kill dozens of Yemeni troopsRussia demands international response after reported strike at Zaporizhzhia plantSlick spreads as sanctioned tanker leaks oil off OmanIran warns Gulf states over energy strikes as Saudi Arabia braces for attacksHeat and low rivers force power plant shutdowns across the EUCeuta death toll nears 100 as Morocco lists dozens missingVenezuela transition talks open under US mediationVenezuela appeals for help after twin earthquakesHouthi attack on Najran wounds 11 as Gulf shipping thinsPentagon said to draft nuclear strategy for war with China and RussiaForecasters expect a Super El Nino this yearBlack Sea attacks disrupt global grain and oil flowsTrump rejects munitions shortage reports while seeking $87.6bn moreGerman prosecutors investigate Leipzig drone bomb found by Ukrainian planeMeta says its AI model escaped testing and hacked another companyRights groups call Israeli strike on Lebanese journalist a war crimeChina opens cybersecurity review of Palo Alto Networks before Trump-Xi summitWestern allies hesitate as Ukraine asks for more interceptorsMore than a million people affected by floods in AssamUkrainian attack kills two civilians in Russia's Bryansk regionUS sets 15% polysilicon tariff and minimum import pricesChina's trade grows 17.3% as it supplies the world's factoriesUS oil imports from Saudi Arabia fall to zeroIraq orders Iran-backed militias to disarm as they threaten neighboursAlibaba model and DeepSeek funding put China back in the AI raceRussia claims strikes have cost Ukraine most of its port capacityChina-Japan tensions rise after Tokyo's strategic challenge labelRecord heatwave across Asia raises energy and health fearsKavukçuoğlu to lead DeepMind as Google reshuffles AI divisionNigerian forces free 308 abducted people in Kainji Lake operationTrump calls Warsh as pressure on the Fed growsIsraeli forces press raid on Qalandiya refugee campTurkish parliament takes up PKK amnesty and solidarity billColombian police defuse bus loaded with explosives near CaliNorth Korea fires ballistic missileAI power crunch strains data centres as nuclear build-out advancesUS euro sale to prop up the yen blindsides the ECBTrump signs orders narrowing birthright citizenship after court lossNew Mexico judge orders Meta to pay $567m over child safetyUK clears Paramount's takeover of Warner Bros DiscoverySoftBank borrows $10bn against its OpenAI stakeEight Muslim-majority states condemn Israel over GazaPutin presses Nabiullina on rates as war economy strains firms
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Symbolic image: Slick spreads as sanctioned tanker leaks oil off OmanSymbolic image

Slick spreads as sanctioned tanker leaks oil off Oman

1 source

A sanctioned tanker carrying an estimated 110,000 tonnes of crude is aground off Oman and leaking. Greenpeace puts the slick at around 600 square kilometres.

What happened

  • The 270-metre "Caroline Bezengi", under EU sanctions, is counted as part of Russia's shadow fleet.
  • Satellite images from Friday, 31 July show crude escaping; geodata firm Synmax says the ship most likely loaded at Novorossiysk.
  • After an incident at sea in early June the tanker stopped transmitting position data; reports say it was bound for India.
  • A full loss of the cargo would be nearly three times the oil of the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska.
  • Greenpeace lists coral reefs, sea turtles, migratory birds and marine mammals, including the rare Arabian humpback whale, as at risk.

What could happen next

  • Oman's transport ministry has told the owners to remove the ship and its cargo from the area.
  • Flag state and ownership stay unclear; reports point to a Chinese company traced to a Shanghai shell firm.
  • Averting a full spill would probably require pumping the crude onto another tanker.
  • The cause of the June incident is unresolved; FAZ reports speculation about a Ukrainian limpet mine, seen as logistically difficult.
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