Oil Spill From Damaged Tanker Off UAE Widens, Closing More Beaches in Northern Emirates

An oil spill from a damaged tanker off the United Arab Emirates has widened and prompted more beach closures, satellite images showed. Images from the European Union's Copernicus network dated October 24 show the slick spreading over several days and reaching close to the shores of the northern emirate of Umm Al Quwain, with dark layers of oil at sea and along the coastline. Sharjah closed Al Hamriya Beach as a precaution, and Ras Al Khaimah said all its beaches are closed until further notice without giving a reason, according to Bloomberg. The UAE said efforts were underway to contain the leak, and its Ministry of Climate Change and Environment is conducting an environmental assessment. Authorities have not named the tanker or said what caused the spill. Experts told Reuters the oil is coming from the Gem No. 2, which shipping sources said was hit by an unidentified projectile, causing a fire that was later extinguished. The UKMTO said the ship left Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, in March and has stayed in the Persian Gulf since the war began. The Washington Institute for Near East Policy said October has been the worst month for attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and nearby waters.

The right-leaning New York Post, in a Dubai-datelined report, leads with the widening spill and the Copernicus images. It places the spill in the context of the US-Israeli war with Iran and the Washington Institute's data, and stresses that the tanker and cause are officially unnamed. Left-leaning outlets had not reported the story at the time of writing; alternative/independent and right-leaning outlets had. ZeroHedge, an alternative outlet, largely matches the Post's facts but stitches together quotes from Al Jazeera, Reuters and Bloomberg, focusing on the closures and the Emirati silence on the tanker's name. Semafor offers a distinct angle: the threat to the tourist season, the planned Wynn Al Marjan Island opening, residents' reports of fuel-like odors, and earlier spills off Oman and Qeshm Island. The sources do not conflict on the core facts.