Shina Ansari, head of Iran’s Department of Environment, said in a post on X that the oil pollution affecting the southern coasts of Qeshm and Hengam is among the visible consequences of the military aggression imposed on Iran’s coastal and marine ecosystems.
She said personnel from the Department of Environment are carrying out cleanup operations in cooperation with executive bodies and local communities, adding that part of the coastal strip in Suza has already been cleaned.
The pollution comes as Iranian officials have raised concerns over the broader environmental consequences of military activities and other operations in the Persian Gulf.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei recently warned that environmental protection must be an integral part of any future arrangements concerning the administration of the Strait of Hormuz. Referring to oil pollution along Qeshm’s shores, he said preliminary evidence had pointed to a foreign bulk carrier as the source, with contamination detected at several coastal sites and parts of the sea surface.
Baqaei also stressed that the recent incident was only a visible example of wider pollution that has degraded the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman and damaged Iran’s coastal ecosystems over the past decades. He argued that parties benefiting from commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz have both legal and moral responsibilities to help address environmental damage to the region’s waters.
MNA