The Environment Ministry cleared the Miinerva Helen of blame for the worst oil spill in the country’s history following a ‘professional and comprehensive inspection’ Zafrir Rinat Nir Hasson Feb. 28, 2021 The Minerva Helen, a Greek tanker, has been cleared of suspicion for the oil spill that polluted large stretches of Israel’s Mediterranean coastline in […]

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ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS: ‘We need to draw a line in the sand’ By MAX KAPLAN-ZANTOPP   FEBRUARY 25, 2021  The scene at Hof Hasharon beach on Tuesday was nothing short of heartbreaking. A beautiful landscape tarnished with countless dark bits of tar scattered across the sand and rocky shore.“ I’m really trying to get my head […]

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Much of Israel’s approximately 200-km. (125-mile) Mediterranean coastline has been contaminated with thick tarballs, and Israelis have been warned to stay away from beaches. By SHAUL CHOREV   MARCH 1, 2021 Massive maritime oil spills have a way of searing our collective memory. For Americans, this trauma was instilled by two incidents: the Exxon Valdez […]

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The Environmental Protection Ministry is investigating the report and its credibility. By YUVAL BAGNO/MAARIV   FEBRUARY 27, 2021 Satellite footage obtained on Friday morning points to a possible new oil slick in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea that may reach Israel’s shores.The Environmental Protection Ministry has announced that it is investigating the report and its credibility.  “Whenever the […]

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February 28, 2021 The amount of tar that has polluted the sand beaches of south Lebanon in recent days has been estimated to be at around two tons, a Lebanese MP said. “The cleaning process will be arduous and painstaking and it requires followup and cooperation between municipalities, scout associations and local, national and international […]

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February 8, 2021 Following reports indicating that Lebanon has reached an agreement to import Iraqi crude oil, The Programme director of Greenpeace MENA Julien Jreissati commented: “Iraqi oil has a high sulfur content and using it for power generation will worsen the air pollution in Lebanon that has already reached an alarming level”. Greenpeace has […]

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Environmental protection minister says tar on Israel’s beaches that caused the country’s worst case of sea pollution in decades came from a single scofflaw ship Zafrir Rinat Feb. 24, 2021 The oil pollution over the past week along the length of Israel’s Mediterranean coastline was caused by a single ship, Environmental Protection Minister Gila Gamliel […]

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Tar washing up along 90% of Israel’s coastline could take years to clean up, experts warn By MAYA MARGIT/THE MEDIA LINE   FEBRUARY 24, 2021 President Reuven Rivlin visits cleanup efforts at Herziliya beach after oil spill (photo credit: AMOS BEN-GERSHOM/GPO) A Greek-owned and flagged oil tanker has been named as the main suspect in […]

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Minerva Helen, a Greek tanker, was mentioned by several Israeli media outlets as responsible for the leak ■ Company denies all allegations Almog Ben Zikri Zafrir Rinat Feb. 23, 2021 An Israeli court partially lifted on Tuesday the gag order placed on the details pertaining to an oil spill off the country’s coast that led […]

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February 25, 2021 President Michel Aoun has been following up on the reports about the oil spill that has affected Israel’s entire coastline before reaching Lebanon’s shores, the National News Agency said. The agency added that Aoun has asked caretaker Foreign Minister Charbel Wehbe to follow up on the issue with the U.N. and the […]

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Rawad Taha, Al Arabiya English Published: 22 February ,2021 Lebanon and Israel face the strongest marine ecological disaster since the 2006 war oil spill after a recent oil leak that officials in Lebanon said has originated from “a ship of the Israeli enemy” and has now reached the southern shores of Lebanon. Lebanon’s Prime Minister […]

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A disastrous oil spill that has blackened most of Israel’s shoreline has apparently affected Lebanon and deposits of tar have started washing up in the Lebanese south. The management of the city of Tyre’s coastal nature reserve, one of Lebanon’s last remaining sandy beaches and an important nesting site for endangered Loggerhead and Green sea […]

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A gag order on publishing details about the investigation into the environmental catastrophe was partially lifted on Tuesday February 23, 2021 The government allocated some NIS 45 million for the treatment of the coastal tar spill on Tuesday, as a gag order on publishing details about the investigation into the environmental catastrophe was partially lifted.“ […]

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Updated reports on the oil spill will be posted tomorrow. Those below provide background and highlight the editorial responses in The Jerusalem Post and Haaretz.

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President Reuven Rivlin, who also thanked the volunteers, said: “Now is the time for an urgent national plan before we face an unprecedented ecological disaster.” The image of a baby sea turtle covered in black tar has become the symbol of an ecological disaster that has struck Israel. Huge quantities of tar have been washed […]

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Haaretz Editorial Feb. 20, 2021 Last week Israelis were exposed to the severe consequences of an oil spill at sea as they beheld the wretched sight of sea turtles soaked in pollutants and requiring emergency treatment to save them. There are serious fears of long-term damage to the rocky portion of the coastline, which is […]

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As efforts continue to clean up coastline after country’s worst oil spill, employees at Israeli National Sea Turtle Rescue Center discover that the condiment helps wash the reptiles and flush tar from their digestive system Associated Press | Published: 02.23.21 When it comes to saving sea turtles, Israeli rescuers have discovered that mayonnaise is a […]

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The cleaning of the tar is done using special oils. It is a lengthy process that requires patience and an especially gentle hand. By IDAN ZONSHINE   FEBRUARY 21, 2021 Following the major ecological disaster that has befallen Israel’s shores as a result of the large amount of toxic oil spilled during a storm on Wednesday, […]

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Activists began reporting globs of black tar on Israel’s coast last week after a heavy storm, wreaking havoc on local wildlife. 21 Feb 2021 Israel closed all its Mediterranean beaches until further notice on Sunday, days after an offshore oil spill deposited tonnes of tar across more than 160km (100 miles) of coastline in what […]

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February 21, 2021 Israeli authorities on Sunday warned people to keep away from the Mediterranean shore to avoid massive tar pollution, as thousands of laborers and volunteers worked to clean contaminated beaches. Powerful winds and unusually high waves pummeled Israel’s entire Mediterranean coastline over Tuesday and Wednesday, with tons of tar staining 160 kilometers of […]

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