MAKKAH: Saudi Arabia has warned the UN Security Council that an “oil spot” has been sighted in a shipping lane 50 km west of an abandoned, decaying oil tanker off the coast of Yemen. Experts fear it could spill 1.1 million barrels of crude into the Red Sea.
The tanker, called the Safer, has been moored near Ras Issa oil terminal for more than five years. The UN previously warned that it could leak four times as much oil as was spilled during the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster off the coast of Alaska. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council have repeatedly called on Houthi insurgents in Yemen to grant access the tanker for a technical assessment and emergency repairs.
In a letter to the 15-member Security Council on Wednesday, Saudi Ambassador to the UN Abdallah Al-Mouallimi said “a pipeline attached to the vessel is suspected to have been separated from the stabilizers holding it to the bottom and is now floating on the surface of the sea.”
He said the vessel “has reached a critical state of degradation, and the situation is a serious threat to all Red Sea countries, particularly Yemen and Saudi Arabia,” adding “this dangerous situation must not be left unaddressed.”
Ahmed Al-Ansari, an environmental expert in Jeddah, said: “There is no doubt that the Houthi militias’ intransigence in allowing … maintenance of the tanker … has increased the chances of deterioration.”
It might result in a major oil leak, he added, that could cause an unprecedented environmental disaster, the “negative economic, environmental and health effects (of which) will be great on the countries of the region and the world, due to the importance of the Red Sea in international maritime transport” as a major link between East and West.
Al-Ansari welcomed the efforts of Saudi authorities to press for action in the UN “to ensure that the Kingdom’s shores and regional waters are protected from all potential dangers.”
Independent researchers are also concerned about the condition of the Safer. In a 2019 report for the Atlantic Council titled “Why the massive floating bomb in the Red Sea needs urgent attention,” energy experts Ian Ralby, David Soud and Rohini Ralby said the potential consequences of a disaster include an end to the two-year cease-fire in Hodeidah and a worsening of Yemen’s humanitarian crisis.
“The risk of explosion increases by the day and if that were to happen, not only would it damage or sink any ships in the vicinity, but it would create an environmental crisis roughly four and a half times the size of the Exxon Valdez oil spill,” they said.
Other experts warn that the security situation in Yemen adds to the danger. “(Given) the complexity of this war, an errant bullet or shell from any one of the combatants could trigger a blast as large as Beirut’s Aug. 4 disaster, prompting a historic oil spill,” Dave Harden, managing director of Georgetown Strategy Group, wrote in an op-ed published by news website The Hill last month. “Cleanup efforts would be daunting — given the insecurity of being in a war zone and the additional health risks from COVID-19.”
Waleed Al-Qudaimi, deputy governor of Hodeidah, said an oil spill would create a humanitarian crisis as severe as the one caused by the Houthi insurgency.
“It (would) add an additional burden that will affect Yemen for decades, deprive thousands of people of their jobs and destroy marine biodiversity in Yemeni waters,” he said as he appealed for the international community to maintain pressure on the Houthis to allow maintenance work.
Saudi Arabia warns UN of oil in Red Sea near abandoned tanker
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Saudi Arabia warns UN of oil in Red Sea near abandoned tanker
- Decaying vessel could leak 1.1m barrels of crude and cause unprecedented disaster, says expert
Saudi interior minister inspects Hajj preparedness at holy sites
RIYADH: Saudi interior minister conducted a field tour on Wednesday to inspect the readiness of the Al-Mashaaer Al-Mugaddassah (Holy Sites) Metro Line as pilgrims move to the holy site of Arafat.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud, who also heads the Supreme Hajj Committee, was briefed on the mechanisms of dispatching and scheduling train trips, in full integration with the relevant security and regulatory authorities, ensuring smooth operations and the safety of pilgrims the Saudi Press Agency said.
The minister boarded a train ride to the Mina 3 (Jamarat) Station, where he inspected the station’s readiness and facilities to receive pilgrims.
The metro line is a high-capacity rail system in Makkah that operates for only seven days a year, during Hajj, as a shuttle service to take pilgrims to and from holy sites. It has a capacity of up to 72,000 passengers per hour.
Prince Abdulaziz also visited the Facilities Security Forces, who regulate pedestrian movement and crowd management in the areas surrounding the metro stations, and was briefed on the forces’ plans and role in supporting and assisting the Hajj Security Forces.
Saudi Press Agency launches Saudi Photo Platform to expand global access to visual archive
- Was unveiled during second edition of the Hajj Media Forum
MAKKAH: Saudi Arabia’s minister of media and chairman of the Saudi Press Agency, Salman bin Yousef Al-Dosari, on Wednesday launched the Saudi Photo Platform, a new digital initiative designed to offer free access to SPA’s vast archive of authenticated images.
Unveiled during the second edition of the Hajj Media Forum at the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Exhibition and Events Center, the platform will allow users worldwide to browse, use, and share images under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.
The forum was attended by local and international media representatives.
Acting SPA President Ali bin Abdullah Al-Zaid said the platform reflected its strategy to make its visual archive more widely available to content creators around the globe, while preserving intellectual property rights and promoting creativity in a regulated digital environment.
He added that launching the platform from Makkah held symbolic significance, reinforcing the city’s historic role in conveying Saudi Arabia’s message to the world, and said it marked an important step toward enhancing the Kingdom’s visual presence in the digital space.
The Saudi Photo Platform, which can be reached on cc.spa.gov.sa, features high-resolution images, sorted by category and accompanied by detailed metadata, including event descriptions and publication dates.
The archive is continuously updated to document key national and international events, and the site is fully supported in both Arabic and English.
The initiative is part of SPA’s broader digital transformation agenda, aimed at modernizing publishing tools and fostering new partnerships with media outlets and online users worldwide, it said.
How NEOM is rewilding Saudi Arabia and reviving ancient falconry traditions
- NEOM is combining heritage and science to protect biodiversity in one of Saudi Arabia’s most diverse landscapes
- Falcons are returning to the wild thanks to efforts to revive their natural habitat and bolster their numbers
RIYADH: As the world marks World Environment Day, a global celebration of nature and a call to protect our planet, attention turns to an ecological transformation taking place in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
NEOM, the Kingdom’s futuristic megacity project, is rapidly becoming a haven for biodiversity — and at the heart of this effort is a renewed commitment to falcon conservation.
Under the banner of the Hadad Program, NEOM is working in partnership with the Saudi Falcons Club and other national entities to reintroduce native falcon species to the Arabian Peninsula, rebuild local ecosystems, and revive an ancient cultural tradition.
The work being done in NEOM is about more than saving birds; it is about restoring balance to a landscape often misunderstood as barren and bringing nature back to the center of modern development.
Since 1973, June 5 has been observed as World Environment Day. Led by the UN Environment Programme, it serves as a platform to raise awareness and prompt action on pressing environmental issues from climate change and pollution to biodiversity loss.
Announced in 2017 as part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 reform agenda, NEOM is a $500 billion mega-project designed to reshape the future of urban living, sustainability and technology.
FASTFACT
• World Environment Day, held on June 5 since 1973, raises awareness on global issues like climate change and biodiversity loss.
Encompassing 26,500 square kilometers of mountains, desert, and coastline along the Red Sea, NEOM’s planners aim to build a zero-emission, high-tech region powered entirely by renewable energy.
Yet beyond the cities of the future lies a growing commitment to the past — particularly in preserving and restoring the Kingdom’s natural heritage.
“People tend to assume that this part of the world is an empty desert, but NEOM is stunning for its habitat diversity,” Paul Marshall, head of nature conservation at NEOM, told Arab News.
Indeed, NEOM’s terrain is anything but barren, from mountain peaks reaching 2,600 meters above sea level to oceanic depths plummeting 1.5 kilometers. In between are red sand deserts, canyons and caves, and spectacular shores with crystal-clear waters and coral reefs.
This biologically rich region is home to creatures great and small: from hyrax, ibex and oryx to hedgehogs, gazelles and a wide variety of birds and insects.
“From those plants we have insects and mammals. Then, we have the large mammals, of course,” Marshall said.
Before human encroachment, the region was even home to apex predators such as cheetahs, lynx and leopards. Now, through conservation, NEOM is seeking to recreate conditions that allow such species to return.
“For all of our biodiversity, it is still a fundamentally arid ecosystem,” he said. “The species here have adapted to survive with very low rainfall and because of that, they are able to thrive despite the conditions.”
The Hadad Program supports NEOM’s rewilding strategy by reintroducing native falcon species, most notably the lanner and barbary falcons. “This is a really exciting program,” Marshall said. “It is one of many programs we are doing to restore the full ecosystem in the NEOM area.”
Despite the climatic conditions, several types of plants were able to grow and uniquely adapt to different parts of NEOM’s ecosystem.
“From those plants we have insects and mammals. Then, we have the large mammals, of course,” he said.
He added: “This is a really exciting program. It is one of many programs we are doing to restore the full ecosystem in the NEOM area.”
Falcons used to be widespread throughout the whole of the Arabian Peninsula. But, through a combination of hunting and capturing for sports, in many places, Marshall said, that these animals are hard to find. Today, efforts are underway to bring them back.
With the rich habitat and the efforts to safeguard the falcons, they are creating an environment where the species can be released with the best chances of survival.
They successfully released eight pairs of barbary falcons, which are a very rare type; very few of them are left in the wild.
“We are committed to caring for falcons as a cultural and historical heritage and supporting all related activities through a set of regulations and organizational frameworks adopted by the club,” Talal Abdulaziz AlShammisi, CEO of the Saudi Falcons Club, told Arab News.
“This includes promoting and preserving falconry heritage, organizing falcon auctions, collaborating with universities, colleges, research centers and health institutions to conduct falcon-related studies and scientific research.”
Falconry is not just a pastime in Saudi Arabia; it is a centuries-old tradition deeply woven into the fabric of national identity.
“Falconry has been practiced by our ancestors across the deserts of the Kingdom for centuries and today the country is home to thousands of falcons and passionate falconers,” said AlShammisi.
“Local species such as the lanner falcon and the barbary falcon are native to the Saudi environment and hold significant ecological value as essential components of environmental balance.”
The barbary falcon, once on the brink of extinction in parts of the Arabian Peninsula, is now making a comeback. Thanks to the Hadad Program’s careful release, rehabilitation and monitoring strategies, the birds are beginning to reclaim their place in Saudi skies.
The initiative’s success is underpinned by a network of partnerships.
FASTFACT
26,500
Area (square kilometers) of NEOM spanning mountains, desert and Red Sea coastline.
NEOM is working with the Saudi National Center for Wildlife, the Saudi Falcon Club and the Special Forces for Environmental Security to monitor these falcons, to protect them and give them not only the best chances of survival but appearing and breeding.
Soon, the first new generation of barbary falcons is expected to hatch in NEOM.
While falcons are among the stars of NEOM’s rewilding efforts, the program goes much further. More than 1,100 animals once absent from the region — including oryx, ibex, mountain gazelles and sand gazelles — have been reintroduced to help restore a natural ecological balance.
The reintroduction of different species of animals is not only a victory for biodiversity but also a chance to restore natural food chains and ecological interactions that sustained this environment for millennia.
With plans to extend across 95 percent of megacity project’s total land area, the NEOM Nature Reserve represents one of the most ambitious conservation zones in the world.
Through projects such as the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Green Initiative, the Kingdom aims to plant billions of trees, reduce emissions, and protect vast swaths of land and sea.
As World Environment Day shines a spotlight on the urgent need to protect and restore our natural world, NEOM stands as a compelling example of how large-scale development and ecological stewardship can go hand in hand.
Saudi minister conducts field tour of Makkah’s holy sites
Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Hajj and Umrah Tawfiq Al-Rabiah conducted a field tour of the holy sites to inspect camp readiness and facilities ahead of pilgrims’ move to Arafat on Thursday, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
He emphasized the need for coordination across entities and adherence to high operational standards.
Al-Rabiah also reviewed accommodation, logistics and the integration of health, technical and support services to ensure a smooth and safe pilgrimage.
Saudi authorities launch self-help e-book to guide Hajj pilgrims to perform rituals correctly
- Pilgrims can use their smartphones to tap on a download point, select their preferred language, and upload the guide to their devices
MAKKAH: Saudi authorities have launched a self-help e-book in various languages to guide and teach pilgrims about Hajj and Umrah rituals in order to perform them in accordance with Islamic rules.
The Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah, and Guidance said the smart rituals guide is available in various locations in Makkah and Madinah, and other holy sites.
Pilgrims can use their smartphones to tap on a download point, select their preferred language, and upload the guide to their devices, the ministry added.
The initiative is part of several educational programs launched in the past weeks by the ministry to help over 1.25 million pilgrims currently undertaking Hajj perform their once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage correctly.
Saudi authorities, including health, logistical, and security sectors, have deployed cutting-edge technologies for this Hajj season, including drones to deliver medicines and artificial intelligence to safeguard and serve Muslim pilgrims.
