Iran's Coast Catches Oil After Reported Ship Strike

Oil now coats beaches on Iran's Qeshm Island, and satellite imagery points back to a bulk carrier reportedly struck in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this month. BBC analysts and a maritime monitoring service said the slick appears to stem from the Liberia-flagged Minoan Pioneer, hit by a projectile in Omani waters on Aug. 3, with the spill later spreading over more than 100 square miles. One satellite expert estimates the oil leak at well over 100,000 gallons.

Iranian officials have blamed a "foreign bulk ship" and said cleanup efforts had mostly cleared the slick by Wednesday evening, per Euronews. Specialists warn the slick threatens mangroves, coral, and turtle nesting grounds near a UNESCO biosphere reserve, per the BBC, and may represent just the visible portion of longer-lasting seabed pollution. Its Foreign Ministry said Iran wants to be compensated for the loss.