The Israeli authorities said on Sunday that they had cleared of all suspicion a Greek oil tanker suspected of being responsible for a major oil spill on the Israeli Mediterranean coast.
Powerful winds and unusually high waves had rocked the Israeli coast last week, spilling tons of tar on the beaches, from Rosh Hanikra, in the north near Lebanon, to Ashkelon, in the south at the border of the Gaza strip.
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Israel's environment ministry said that "
following the opening of an investigation in Greece into the oil tanker
Minerva Helen
, the latter is not involved in tar pollution on Israeli beaches
."
The oil spill, one of the worst that Israel has seen in decades, was the spill of "
tens to hundreds of tons
" of bitumen from a ship, according to initial indications from the ministry.
And teams of the army, civilians and members of NGOs had scoured the coasts of the country to clean the beaches.
"
These masses of tar could continue to arrive on the beaches of Israel in the coming days depending on the currents and the tide,
" the ministry said on Sunday.
Israeli Channel 12 suspected the
Minerva Helen
to be the source of the environmental drama due to its location at sea before the storm.
The company had denied.
"
Environmental crime
"
Inspectors from the Ministry of the Environment arrived in Greece on Saturday to conduct the investigation in cooperation with local authorities.
The investigation "
ruled out this ship as the source of the pollution,
" according to the ministry.
"
We are committed to making all necessary efforts to locate the vessel responsible for this oil spill,
" said Environment Minister Gila Gamliel.
"
There are those responsible for this pollution and we will not allow this environmental crime to go unpunished
," she added.
According to the ministry, dozens of ships have been suspected by Israeli inspectors, aided by international agencies.
Ten of them have since been removed from any suspicion.
He added that he was monitoring, with the help of the Israeli Air Force, a spot about 140 kilometers offshore.
A theft determined that it was not oil, said the Minister of the Environment.
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