Overview
- The Caroline Bezengi, which ran aground in early June, is leaking crude that satellite images show has spread into waters around Dhofar’s Qibliyah Island and formed a sheen of roughly 20 square kilometers.
- Remote-sensing experts say darker slicks and shore deposits indicate at least one hull breach and that oil has reached protected shorelines inside the Hallaniyat Islands marine reserve.
- Ship-tracking data and geospatial analysts show the 274-meter Suezmax loaded Russian-origin oil in Novorossiysk before the voyage and is subject to sanctions from the U.K., EU, Canada and Switzerland.
- Oman ordered the owners to remove the vessel and its cargo by July 23 but it is unclear if they complied, and the U.N. International Maritime Organization says it is monitoring while authorities assess salvage and containment options.
- The incident highlights risks from an aging, opaque 'shadow fleet' that can evade oversight, raises the chance of a larger spill during the monsoon season, and could pressure regional shipping routes and local coastal livelihoods.