Tunisia: the reasons for the sinking of the cargo ship Xelo raise questions
Leila Chikhaoui, Tunisian Minister of the Environment, in the port of Gabès, on April 17, 2022, after the sinking of the Xelo tanker carrying 750 tonnes of diesel.
via REUTERS - TUNISIA ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
In Tunisia, two days after the sinking of an oil tanker in Gabès, pumping operations are underway off this region in the south-east of the country.
The objective is to extract the 750 tons of diesel, transported on the tanker, a high-risk operation, because the slightest leak could cause an oil spill.
In the meantime, the reasons for the sinking of this tanker which was to go to Malta, from Egypt, continue to raise questions.
Advertisement
Read more
What is intriguing is in particular the location of the shipwreck.
The ship sank just 7 kilometers from the Tunisian coast and, given its destination (Malta), it had no place there.
Officially, the captain would have entered the waters of Tunisia to take shelter from the wind.
However, weather reports do not report high winds.
Moreover, the fact that this ship, which flies the Equatoguinean flag, is still in operation raises questions.
In 2021, the authorities of the port of Neapolis, in Greece, would have deemed it unfit for navigation and for good reason: the tanker was built in 1975. It is therefore 47 years old, in other words an eternity for a ship.
Some already suspect the shipowner of having knowingly sunk the ship to defraud the insurance but, for the moment, there is no evidence to support such a scenario.
In charge of crisis management, the Tunisian Ministry of the Environment also announced that a document had disappeared.
This would be the bill of lading where the detail of the load appears.
The Gabès court has opened an investigation into the reasons for the sinking, while the bulk of the pumping operations should begin tomorrow, Tuesday, according to local media.
►Also read: Tunisia: in Gabès, concern rises after the sinking of the cargo ship Xelo
An economic and ecological disaster
If an oil spill were to occur, Abdelmajid Dabbar, president of the Tunisia Ecology Association (ATE) says it would be an ecological and economic disaster in a region with unique biodiversity.
The Gulf of Gabes is the breeding ground for 28% of Mediterranean fish.
Abdelmajid Dabbar, President of the Tunisia Ecology Association (ATE)
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_EN
Tunisia
Environment