Tag: Red Sea

Yemen faces ‘environmental disaster’ as sunken ship threatens massive Red Sea spill`

By AFP correspondents with Amanda Mouawad in Dubai Agence France-Presse (AFP) — The sinking of a Belize-flagged bulker off Yemen after a Huthi missile attack poses grave environmental risks, as thousands of tonnes of fertiliser threaten to spill into the Red Sea, according to officials and experts. The Belize-flagged, Lebanese-operated Rubymar sank on Saturday with 21,000 metric tonnes of ammonium phosphate sulfate fertiliser on board, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM). It had been taking […]

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US destroyer shoots down drones as attacks hit Red Sea shipping

An American destroyer shot down multiple drones on Sunday while assisting commercial ships in the Red Sea that were targeted by attacks from Yemen, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels — who said they targeted two of the ships — launched a series of drones and missiles toward Israel in recent weeks and seized a cargo vessel last month, but the latest attacks mark a significant escalation in the threat to […]

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Israel has ‘no objection’ to Red Sea island transfer to Saudi Arabia: officials

  JERUSALEM (AFP) — Israel has “no objection” to two strategic Red Sea islands being transferred to Saudi Arabia as a step towards any normalisation of ties between both countries, high-ranking officials said Thursday. The Jewish state hopes US President Joe Biden’s Middle East tour will hail the start of diplomatic ties between it and Saudi Arabia. After meeting Israeli officials on Wednesday and Thursday, Biden is on Friday to travel on to Saudi Arabia […]

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Red Sea huge source of air pollution, greenhouse gases: study

by Patrick GALEY Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Hydrocarbon gases bubbling from the bottom of the Red Sea are polluting the atmosphere at a rate equivalent to the emissions of some large fossil fuel exporting countries, researchers said Tuesday. The gases seeping from the waters — which are ringed by the resorts and ports of several countries, including Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia — then mix with emissions from industrial shipping and turned […]

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Red Sea huge source of air pollution, greenhouse gases: study

by Patrick GALEY Agence France-Presse   Paris, France (AFP) – Hydrocarbon gases bubbling from the bottom of the Red Sea are polluting the atmosphere at a rate equivalent to the emissions of some large fossil fuel exporting countries, researchers said Tuesday. The gases seeping from the waters — which are ringed by the resorts and ports of several countries, including Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Saudi Arabia — then mix with emissions from industrial shipping and […]

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Egypt’s rebounding tourism threatens Red Sea corals

by Aziz EL MASSASSI Agence France Presse Hurghada, Egypt (AFP) — In serene turquoise waters off Egypt’s Red Sea coast, scuba divers ease among delicate pink jellyfish and admire coral — yet a rebounding tourism sector threatens the fragile marine ecosystem. The Red Sea is a top scuba diving destination, but Egypt’s tourism sector was buffeted by a wave of security shocks through much of this decade, before a partial recovery since 2017. A diving […]

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In the Red Sea, coral reefs can take the heat of climate change

ELIAT, Israel (AFP) — In the azure waters of the Red Sea, Maoz Fine and his team dive to study what may be the planet’s most unique coral: one that can survive global warming, at least for now. The corals, striking in their red, orange and green colors, grow on tables some eight meters (26 feet) underwater, put there by the Israeli scientists to unlock their secrets to survival. They are of the same species […]

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