News - Yemen: The Minister of Transport, Abdulwahab Al-Durra, expressed his regret at the delay in starting the process of replacing the floating tank Safer, a decrepit oil supertanker, laden with 1.1 million barrels crude oil, which has been rusting in anchorage off the port of Ras Isa in Yemen’s west coast, according to previous agreement.

His remarks came during his meeting with the head of the UN Mission to Support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA) - the head of the Redeployment Coordination Committee, Michael Beary in Hodeidah.

Minister Al-Durra confirmed that the condition of the tank portends a catastrophe in the event of delay in replacing it with a new tank.

He pointed out that the National Salvation Government is still committed to implementing the Stockholm Agreement, while the coalition places multiple obstacles, which confirms their lack of seriousness.

Minister Al-Durra stressed the need for the UN to play its role in the humanitarian aspects, including the permanent and continuous opening of Sana'a International Airport and the port of Hodeidah without conditions.

In early October, the Supervisory Committee for the Implementation of the Urgent Maintenance Agreement and the Comprehensive Evaluation of the Safer Floating Reservoir held a video meeting with the Resident Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs in Yemen, David Grisley, to discuss accelerating the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding to resolve the issue of the Safer Floating Reservoir.

The committee stressed that time has become a decisive factor in preventing an environmental disaster in the Red Sea due to the continued deteriorating situation of the Safer Floating Reservoir.

For his part, Grisley indicated that $82 million of the necessary funds had been collected to implement the memorandum of understanding signed on March 5, 2022.

In the meeting, they decided to start the process of providing an alternative tank equivalent to the floating tank Safer, which will permanently replace it, as work will start during the next few days.

Over the past two decades, the marine environment in Yemen has been exposed to many environmental threats and disasters caused by oil and fuel storage tanks, through the spillage and leakage of thousands of tons of oil and mazut into Yemeni territorial waters. This led to the pollution of large areas of beaches with oil spots and black foam, and the death of large quantities of fish and marine life.

With the continuation of the US-Saudi aggression against Yemen for eight years, the beaches and seas of Yemen are exposed to more dangerous threats, which no longer enjoy any government sovereignty.

More than once, local media reported pictures documenting the unprecedented proliferation of dangerous oil and non-oil vehicles, in the complete absence of government authorities in the occupied areas.

The disaster of the FSO Safer will not only affect marine life in the Red Sea, but will have a significant impact on the global economy, a New York-based media company reported.
 

#Yemen #UN #Safer #US-Saudi Aggression #Minister of Transport About 1 year