Iran Denies Oil Spill Off Kharg Island
A suspected oil spill covering dozens of square kilometers has been detected in satellite images near Iran’s Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export hub, though Tehran has denied responsibility and dismissed reports of a spill linked to Iranian facilities.
A suspected oil spill covering dozens of square kilometers has been detected in satellite images near Iran’s Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export hub, though Tehran has denied responsibility and dismissed reports of a spill linked to Iranian facilities.
Satellite imagery from the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-3 satellites showed a grey-and-white slick in waters west of the island between May 6 and May 8. The cause of the suspected spill and its point of origin remain unclear.
Leon Moreland, a researcher at the Conflict and Environment Observatory, said the slick appeared visually consistent with oil and estimated that it covered about 45 square kilometers. Louis Goddard, co-founder of the climate and commodities consultancy Data Desk, also said the images likely showed an oil slick, describing it as potentially the largest such spill detected since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran 70 days ago.
Maariv cited an Iranian official Friday denying the report and calling it part of enemy “psychological warfare.” The official claimed the material seen in the area came from oil tanker waste discharged into the sea by a European tanker, which he said had damaged the environment.
The US military and Iran’s mission to the United Nations in Geneva did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the satellite images.
Kharg Island is central to Iran’s energy sector, handling around 90% of the country’s oil exports, much of them bound for China. US forces previously said they destroyed military targets on the island earlier in the war.
The suspected spill comes amid continuing disruption in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, where the US Navy has been enforcing a blockade on Iranian ports. Washington says the blockade is meant to stop Iranian tankers from entering or leaving port, while US and Iranian forces have repeatedly clashed in the Gulf and around the strait.
The war has trapped hundreds of vessels in the region and caused major disruption to global crude oil supplies, as well as shipments of refined oil products and liquefied natural gas.
Moreland said imagery from May 8 did not show evidence of additional active spills. That leaves open whether the slick came from a single incident, vessel discharge or damage connected to the wider conflict around Iran’s oil infrastructure.