Azernews.Az

Ulviyya Poladova

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Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei has warned that oil pollution in the region could cause trillions of dollars in damage to marine ecosystems, AzerNEWS reports.

Baghaei made the remarks in a post on social media X, sharing video footage showing pollution along the coast of Iran's Kish Island. He attributed the incident to a foreign vessel.

"This incident is only one visible example of the extensive pollution - both overt and concealed - that has degraded the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, as well as the region’s marine ecosystem, over recent decades, imposing trillions of dollars in damage on Iran’s coastal areas," Baghaei wrote.

He added that all parties involved in commercial shipping bear both a legal and moral responsibility for addressing the damage caused to the region.

According to the Associated Press, the 247-meter-long Caroline Bezengi tanker departed from a port in the Black Sea in May. On June 8, the vessel's crew reported an explosion on board. The tanker later ran aground near the Al Hallaniyah Islands in Oman's Dhofar Governorate, resulting in an oil spill.

The report said the oil leaked from the Caroline Bezengi polluted approximately 12 kilometers of Oman's coastline.