Oil Tanker Sinks Off Tunisian Coast, Environmental Disaster Feared But Divers Don't Find Leaks
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The Equatorial Guinea-flagged oil tanker sent a distress call, then sank in Tunisia's territorial waters as it was on its way to Malta. Carrying from 750 tons to as much as 1,000 tons of oil, the ship raised environmental alarms throughout the region. Italy sent a specialized vessel that deals with marine disasters, and divers found that the ship's valves were closed and sealed.
Ten Al Qaeda militants escaped from jail in Yemen, and Yemen's new leadership council says it wants peace but is ready for war, saying it can "score a decisive military victory."
In Saudi Arabia, the deportation of four Uyghurs to China is halted, and billionaire investor Alwaleed bin Talal opposes Elon Musk's bid to take over Twitter. In Qatar, the recent visit by Iran's President Ibrahim Raisi will be followed by the transfer of 28 Iranian prisoners from Qatar back home to Iran.
And news from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Yemen, Egypt, Jordan, and More.
An oil tanker carrying 750 tons of fuel or more sank off Tunisia's coast, and Tunisian authorities hurriedly began work to prevent an "environmental disaster." The Equatorial Guinea -flagged tanker sank due to bad weather. The ship sent a distress call and then sank in Tunisian territorial waters, about four miles off the Gulf of Gabes coast. Water seeped into the ship after reaching the engine room, but the leaks were small. "There are minimal leaks, which are not even visible to the naked eye, and fortunately, the oil is evaporating, so there shouldn't be a disaster in the Gulf of Gabes," Mohamed Karray, a local official, said. The ship was headed to Malta when it asked to enter Tunisian waters because of bad weather. The ship's seven crew members were rescued by Tunisian authorities and briefly hospitalized.
Deutsche Welle, Tunisia: Ship carrying 750 tons of fuel sinks off coast.
Italy and other countries are helping to prevent environmental damage by the sunken ship, which carried between 750 tons and 1,000 tons of fuel. Tunisia's defense ministry said other countries offered to help but did not identify them. Local media said Italy had sent a naval vessel specialized in dealing with marine disasters. Officials said the salvage operation would need to be "delicate and sensitive" to prevent leakage.
Reuters, Tunisia seeks to limit damage after ship carrying up to 1,000 tons of fuel sinks.
Divers who inspected the hull of a tanker that sank off Tunisia detected no leaks, officials said. Tunisia's environmental ministry, in a statement, said: "No leak has been detected," and Tunisian transport minister Rabie Majidid said rescue workers had checked that valves were closed and divers ensured they were sealed. The scene is sealed off by Tunisia's military, but the defense ministry released photos showing the vessel submerged on its side.
AFP, Divers find 'no leaks' from fuel-laden ship sunk off Tunisia.
Saudi Arabia's crown prince talked oil with Russia's Vladimir Putin and they defended the OPEC+ production format of limited monthly increases. The two leaders, representing the largest oil producers in the OPEC+ alliance, "spoke highly of the joint work in the OPEC Plus format aimed at ensuring the stability of the global oil market," a statement said. Saudi Arabia and other producers so far have rebuffed efforts by oil-consuming nations to bring on additional supplies as prices exceed $100 a barrel.
S&P Global, Saudi Arabia's MBS and Russia's Putin back OPEC+ efforts to balance oil markets.
Ten al-Qaeda militants escaped from prison in Yemen's eastern province of Hadramaut. The inmates had staged a quarrel among themselves at the prison in the city of Seiyun, and guards intervened. When they did, the prisoners overpowered the guards, seizing their Kalashnikov rifles and binding their hands before running away. Preliminary investigations indicated the prisoners must have coordinated their move with prison guards who collaborated, as well as other militants outside.
Associated Press, Ten al-Qaeda militants escape from prison in eastern Yemen.
Yemen's rebels criticized a new U.S.-led naval task force that will patrol the Red Sea. The Houthis' chief negotiator and spokesman, Mohammed Abdul-Salam, said the U.S. move contradicts Washington's support of the United Nations-brokered peace truce. The task force "enshrines the aggression and blockade of Yemen," he claimed on his social media account. Announcement of the task force came amid a ceasefire for Ramadan. Up to eight ships will patrol the sea.
Associated Press, Yemen's rebels criticize new, US-led task force in Red Sea.
Yemen's new leadership: "Our first option is peace, but we are ready for war." In an interview, Rashad al-Alimi, head of Yemen's new Presidential Leadership Council, said the council, with support of the Saudi Arabian-led military coalition, is in a position to "score a decisive military victory." Members of the council plan to meet soon with the United Nations special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, and then travel to Yemen to take their oaths of office.
AFP, Yemen's new leaders say focused on peace path.
Yemen's new Presidential Leadership Council convened for the first time and set its priorities. Rashad al-Alimi, chairman of the eight-man council, said the group will seek "the highest level of consensus," looking to cooperation from local forces and political groups to help restore the state. "We realize the amount of challenges ahead of us, but we are determined enough to forge ahead," Alimi said. "We are relying on the cooperation of all sides, on the local, regional, and international."
Asharq Al-Awsat, Yemen presidential council sets priorities, vows to restore state.
Saudi Arabia stopped the deportation of four Uyghurs to China. The individuals included a woman and her daughter, who were detained near Mecca in March and told by police they faced deportation to China, along with two Uyghur men already held. After worldwide protests by human rights groups, the planned deportation was halted. Amnesty International said "the deportation of the four Uyghurs didn't go ahead, but they are still at imminent risk."
ANI, After protests by rights groups, Saudi Arabia halts deportation of four Uyghurs to China.
Saudi Arabian investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal , a major shareholder in Twitter, said he is against a takeover by entrepreneur Elon Musk. "I don't believe the proposed offer comes close to the intrinsic value of Twitter, given its growth prospects," he said.
Reuters, Saudi prince Alwaleed bin Talal rejects Elon Musk's Twitter takeover bid.
Iran confirmed it relocated a centrifuge facility to its underground Natanz site. The move came days after the UN agency watching Iran's nuclear activities had installed surveillance cameras to monitor the workshop. An Iranian spokesman said operations had been moved from Karaj "to a safer place," underground at Natanz and to Isfahan, location of another Iranian nuclear facility.
Asharq Al-Awsat, Iran confirms centrifuge workshop moved to underground site.
The United Nations' nuclear watchdog can monitor activities at Iran's nuclear sites, but it can't access information on its own cameras. "Monitoring continues, but until an agreement is reached, the information will remain with us and will probably be deleted," a spokesman for Iran's atomic energy organization said.
CanIndia, Iran says IAEA continues to monitor nuke activities without access to camera records.
Qatar has agreed to transfer 28 Iranian prisoners to Iran. Hamidrez Dehghani, Iran's ambassador to Qatar, said the agreement was made following a visit to Qatar by Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi in February. "Throughout the past month, we have been preparing the case and obtaining the consent of the prisoners for transfer," he said, without providing further details.
Al Arabiya, Tehran's envoy says 28 Iranian prisoners in Qatar to be transferred to Iran.
Two members of Iraq's paramilitary force Hashd Shaabi were killed in an attack launched by Islamic State militants. The IS forces attacked the Iraqi base in the rugged area of al-Eith in the eastern part of Salahudin province. Another four members were killed in a traffic accident in western Iraq.
Menafn, Six members of Iraq's Hashd Shaabi paramilitary force killed.
A Cairo court sentenced a Muslim Brotherhood leader to life in prison in a case that has been going on since 2011. Acting Brotherhood leader Mahmoud Ezzat was given a life sentence, which in Egypt carries 25 years in jail, and the ruling can be appealed. Ezzat and other defendants were accused of storming Egyptian prisons to create chaos, acting with the Palestinian Hamas and the Lebanese Hezbollah. Ezzat was arrested in 2020 after being sentenced in absentia in 2015. Under Egyptian law, in absentia convictions must be re-tried once the defendant is apprehended.
Ahram, Acting Muslim Brotherhood leader Mahmoud Ezzat sentenced to life for storming Egypt's eastern borders.
Libya's national oil company closed an oilfield after protesters entered and stopped production. The state-run National Oil Corp. said the stoppage was at al-Feel field in the country's south. Tribal leaders in the region also announced the closing, demanded the removal of the oil company's chairman, and said oil revenues should be distributed fairly to Libya's three main regions.
Associated Press, Libyan oil company says field closed amid political impasse.
MORE: Egypt unemployment drops to 7.4%, Asharq Al-Awsat... Iraq says may reactivate Halliburton gas deal in May: oil minister, Al Arabiya.... Iran claims seizing two ships with smuggled fuel, Dawn... Qatar projected to grow at 4.9% this year: World Bank. The Peninsula... UAE's Adnoc buying two new gas tankers from China as part of LNG push, Al Arabiya... Oman's economy on solid path to recovery, says World Bank, Oman Observer.
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Opinion: Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have departed from the unspoken but well understood agreement with the United States of "oil for security." The two Gulf states demonstrated their unreliability in an energy crisis, and the U.S. should downgrade relationships to arms-length, Greg Priddy writes in the National Interest. "The United States should be honest about the fact that it will never again be a relationship where trust runs deep enough to share our more sensitive technologies, like the F-35."
National Interest, Are Saudi Arabia and the UAE no longer US partners?