Israeli attacks spawn environmental disaster -

[Hoping4Change]

Bombardment unleashes oil spill into Mediterranean sea. Sarraf said Israeli planes “purposely hit the tanks which are the closest to the sea,” and knocked out the berms designed to prevent any ruptured tanks from sending oil flowing into the waters.


“Chances are, our whole marine ecosystem facing the Lebanese shoreline is already dead,” Sarraf said. “What is at stake today is all marine life in the eastern Mediterranean.”


The environmental damage has attracted little attention but experts warn the long-term effects could be devastating. Some 110,000 barrels of oil poured into the Mediterranean two weeks ago after Israeli warplanes hit a coastal power plant. One tank is still burning, sending thick black smoke across the country. Compounding the problem is an Israeli naval blockade and continuing military operations that have made any cleanup impossible. And environmental officials say the longer the problem is allowed to go unchecked, the greater the lasting damage.


Experts warn Cyprus, Turkey and even Greece could be affected.

Lebanon is one of the few countries in the Arab world that pays attention to pollution. Minibuses that run on diesel have been banned, while factories are forced to abide by strict rules.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14138687 /

[ThomCat]

1. I'm speachless.

[Hoping4Change]

6. BBC- Almost as much oil as EXXON Valdez spill. Which was huge.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5233358.stm


"Initial reports indicated that 10,000 tonnes of heavy fuel oil had escaped from damaged tanks, but the eventual total could be 35,000 tonnes.

By comparison, spillage from the Exxon Valdez accident totalled just under 40,000 tonnes of crude oil.

Fishing and tourism

"What we have here is equivalent to a tanker sinking, and 20,000 to 30,000 tonnes reaching the shoreline," said Berj Hatjian from the Lebanese environment ministry.

"We've had it immediately rushing into the sea from the beach line," he told BBC News."



edit to include quote

[kwolf68]

2. Wow

Yea, unreal.

[QuestionAll...]

3. It's Hezbollah's fault. doncha know.

bet yer ass if some talking head is confronted with this, this is the explanation.

[kwolf68]

5. No doubt

Did they get tired of bombing children?

Those damn sea turtles are probably terrorists. Goddamn Ghouls.

[Hoping4Change]

7. Israel has not returned phone calls from MSNBC.

"Israel’s Environmental Affairs ministry declined comment, referring questions to the Foreign Ministry, which did not immediately return phone calls." MSNBC



So what is going to be the spin?

[kwolf68]

8. Hezbollah was attacking Israel with rocket launchers

From the Sea.

[Hoping4Change]

13. Come again. Israel has a marine blockade. Or is that sarcasm?

[bvar22]

26. They were hiding behind their oil tanks.....

Someone somewhere saw rockets being fired within 100 miles of the oil tanks.
They HAD to defend themselves.

[QuestionAll...]

28. soon to see an explanatory vid clip...

of Exxon Valdez and caribous with rpgs to prove that point.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

4. Not to worry. Just more harmless "birth pangs".

[MadHound]

9. I heard a piece on this morning from NPR

15,000 tons of fuel oil dumped into the Mediterranean, wiping out virtually all of the beach front tourist business for a generation or more. And now it has spread up to Syria, and is threatening Turkey, Cyprus and Greece.

Gee, indiscriminate, wanton and out of control death and destruction seems to be Israel's MO in this war. Why are they wanting to piss off everybody in the ME with this sort of shit?

[Hoping4Change]

10. That was an initial estimate. BBC reporting that it could be as much as

35,000 tonnes. And I too am dumbfounded by Israeli tactics. IMO they crave to be hated becuae this was preventable. They knew what would happen by bombing tanks that were right on the coast.

[MadHound]

12. Great, so not only does Israel decimate Lebanon's tourist industry

But the tourist industry of every single country on the eastern Mediterranean seaboard! I think that if I were any of those countries I would be demanding reparations from Israel for the tourist revenues lost over the next ten-twenty years.

And as I heard, it is spreading further by the hour because there are no clean-up experts or agencies that want to get anywhere close to where Israel is conducting operations. So this environmental disaster just continues to spread out.

[slor]

11. All this over a couple of soldiers...

that they could have exchanged prisoners for. A tragedy for our entire world.

[Hoping4Change]

15. What enrages me beyond words is that money that will have to

to restore Lebanon is money is money taken form other humanitarian crises like Darfur not too mention the massive drought gripping Africa just to mention two. What massive needless pointless destruction.

[Hubert Flottz]

14. Saddam is probably laughing his ass off!

A trick he would be proud of!

[Hoping4Change]

16. What a chilling remark that is and true.

[malaise]

17. Wow

This has finally reached MSMachine.

[Hoping4Change]

19. I was surprised too. I'm also surprised they are quoting

assertions that the disaster was deliberate.

[malaise]

20. They covered this up for ages

Today is August 3rd. Fugg them.
The incident began with Israeli raids on the Jiyyeh power utility 30km (19 miles) south of Beirut between 13 and 15 July.

[Hoping4Change]

22. My gawd your right. I'm stunned. When I heard about last night

on a Canadian news programme I thought it had just happened.

[malaise]

24. The French have been trying to help along with

other countries in the Mediterranean but the Israel blockage of the ports isn't helping. Wait 'til the wind turns - Israel may pay for this on their own beaches.


Many more pix.
http://images.google.com/images?q=Lebanon+oil+spill&hl=...

[snappyturtle]

34. Thank you malaise!

I thought I was doing the deja-vu thing! I KNEW I had heard this DAYS ago because I showed my husband the pictures on-line at the time! Whew! I thought I was prophetic or something! I cannot believe there hasn't been complete outrage over this.....of course the Greens have their hands full with global warming these days. Thanks again.

[countryjake]

18. A perspective from Lebanon...

http://ecocampaigner.blogspot.com /

~snip~

According to media and the Ministry of Environment said that this oil spill is bigger than what the local authority can handle and urgent help is needed from outside. The Ministry of Environment has organized a team to follow on this issue, and have requested help from the United Nations Environmental Program and the Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Center for the Mediterranean (REMPEC). The Kuwaiti Environment Authority has responded to the Lebanese government call and promised to send equipment and expertise to help in the clean up. Nevertheless, the constant Israeli air raids will make the clean up operation very difficult. Last week Israel targeted ambulances and aid trucks coming into the country. There is no guarantee that Israel will not target any equipment that approaches the beach, and clean up efforts might not be in place until a cease fire has been reached.

This spill will not be the only environmental impact of the attack on Lebanon. Other impacts include air pollution and chemical spills due to the targeting of industrial factories, fuel bunkers, and other flammable structures; the use of depleted uranium in Israeli bombs, and the huge waste and sanitary crisis resulting from the 750,000 refugees in Lebanon, which can lead to water pollution and the spread of diseases. A full assessment of the environmental impact of this war can only happen after the conflict is over and Lebanon should work with the international community on this issue.


And a few pictures...scroll down to find them:

http://beirutupdate.blogspot.com /

[Hoping4Change]

21. "this summer, the town was planning to celebrate its 7,000th birthday"

Byblos (Jbeil) bay is completely smothered. this once picturesque and touristic town, also the oldest port city on Earth, is in ruins. we could smell the oil before we were anywhere close to the bay. this summer, the town was planning to celebrate its 7,000th birthday! there were huge festivities planned... so much went into it... now... nothing but this black plague.

we stopped to speak with a few fishermen. they are completely devastated. they have no means of income anymore. so many of them had fixed up their boats for this summer i hopes of giving tourists small boat trips around the coast. now, that is gone too.






Thanks for posting the link countryjake, it is heart-rending

[ThomCat]

27. That is heartbreaking.

[leftchick]

23. Wouldn't this Make Israel Eco- errorists?

K&R

[Hoping4Change]

29. I think it does. Can you imagine how horrying it would feel if

wildlife areas emotionally significant to you were on a hit list? There is something terrifying knowing that nothing is sacred to your enemy.

[leftchick]

30. Eco-Terrorists!

[nam78_two]

25. k & r

[manic expression]

31. Have they no shame? Have they no sanity?

Further proof that Israel pursues its own belligerent and disgusting aims at the expense of all others.

[Hoping4Change]

33. I agree, their actions are shameless and insane.

I am beyond outrage.

[countryjake]

32. satellite image of the extent of this disaster

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/aug2006/2006-08-02-03.a...


This satellite image of the eastern Mediterranean coast shows the extent of the spill with a straight line. August 1, 2006



Oil spill on the coast of Lebanon

[countryjake]

35. Kick

[bloom]

36. kick

[scarletwoman]

37. This is so absolutely sickening.

I don't dare express the depth of outrage I feel over this whole disgusting military enterprise. The kind of leaders that direct and abet such atrocities are vile filthy degenerates -- and I'm mean the whole lot of them: Bush, Blair, Cheney, Rice, Olmert, the neocons, the right-wing militaritsts -- ALL of them.

sw