The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Yemen: UN starts high stakes operation to prevent catastrophic oil spill from decaying tanker
A complex maritime salvage effort started on Tuesday morning in the Red Sea off the coast of war-torn Yemen to transfer one million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker to a replacement vessel.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the situation as possibly “the world’s largest ticking time-bomb”, as the United Nations-led mission began.
“(It is) definitely a challenging operation, both because it was technically complex, and because of the location of the vessel Safer, and obviously the political context,” said Sarah Bel, spokesperson for the UN Development Programme (UNDP), in Geneva.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck mission and the culmination of nearly two years of political groundwork, fundraising and project development" said the UN chief.
The Safer - which was abandoned over eight years ago - has been at risk of breaking up or exploding for years. According to UNDP, the oil aboard the Safer is being pumped into the replacement vessel Yemen (formerly Nautica) in a ship-to-ship transfer that is expected to take 19 days to complete.
“We know that it would devastate fishing communities in Yemen’s Red Sea coast…likely wiping out 200,000 livelihoods instantly,” said Ms. Bel. “So whole communities of the region would be exposed to life-threatening toxins.”
The UNDP spokesperson added: “The environmental impact on coral reefs, life supporting mangroves and other marine life would be severe and we estimate that fish stocks would take 25 years to recover.”
A catastrophic oilspill would likely also close the ports of Hudaydah and Saleef “which are essential to bring food, fuel and lifesaving supplies into Yemen, where 17 million people need food assistance”, Ms. Bel explained.
In addition, shipping on the Suez Canal could be disrupted for weeks and a potential clean-up bill could easily run into the tens of billions of dollars, experts have warned.
Although the ship-to-ship transfer of the Safer oil is an important milestone, it is not the end of the operation.
A critical next step is arranging for the delivery of a specialized buoy to hold the replacement vessel in place safely and securely.
“There's a long-term solution because we will need, after removing the oil, to tow and scrap the Safer and make sure that we store the oil,” explained Ms. Bel. “So, you can see this is such a complex operation…to my knowledge, this is the very first time that we deal with such a project.”
The UN will need about $20 million in funding to finish the project, which includes cleaning and scrapping the Safer and removing any remaining environmental threat to marine life.
-ends-
- Exterior wide shot: UN flag alley UN Geneva
- Wide shot: mediator behind panel at the press conference, screens with speakers
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Sarah Bel, UNDP Communication Advisor: “Definitely a challenging operation, both because it was technically complex because of the location of the “FSO Safer” and obviously the political context.”
- Close shot: attendee typing at the press conference
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Sarah Bel, UNDP Communication Advisor: “We know that it would devastate fishing communities in Yemen’s Red Sea coast and likely wiping out 200’000 livelihoods instantly. So whole communities of the region would be exposed to life threatening toxins.”
- Medium shot: mediator and attendees at the press conference, screen with speakers
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Sarah Bel, UNDP Communication Advisor: “It would also close the ports of Hodeidah and Saleef which are essential to bring food, fuel and lifesaving supplies into Yemen, where 17 million people need food assistance.”
- Medium shot: attendees at the press conference
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Sarah Bel, UNDP Communication Advisor: “The environmental impact on coral reefs, life supporting mangroves and other marine life would be severe and we estimate that fish stocks would take 25 years to recover. So those are the main remarks that we have on the devastating impact this field would have.”
- Medium shot: attendee at the press conference, screen with speakers
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Sarah Bel, UNDP Communication Advisor: “There's a long-term solution because we will need, after removing the oil, to tow and scrap the “Safer” and make sure that we store the oil. So you can see this is such a complex operation. And yes, to my knowledge, this is the very first time that we deal with such a project.”
- Medium shot: attendees and mediator behind panel at the press conference, screen with speakers
- Wide shot: camera in the foreground, attendees at the press conference in the background
- Medium shot: attendees and mediator typing at the press conference
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNIFIL
UN Security Council meets amid rising Israel-Hezbollah tensions in Lebanon.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the biweekly press briefing in Geneva, UN Human Rights spokesperson made the following remarks deplored the death in State custody of Brooklyn Rivera in Nicaragua.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Lebanon: Tyre hospital strikes leave patients without critical care – WHO
The UN health agency in Lebanon is verifying reports of strikes on a hospital in the southern city of Tyre on Monday, amid a concerning rise in attacks on healthcare in the country.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | WMO
El Niño confirmed, extreme weather events will be more intense, says WMO
The UN urged all countries on Tuesday to bolster early warning systems after confirming the onset of El Niño, warning that the Pacific Ocean-warming phenomenon will bring above-average temperatures “nearly everywhere” and fuel more extreme weather.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
‘A disease you get when you care for someone’: on the frontlines of the Ebola crisis with WHO
Two weeks into the latest Ebola outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) is estimating that there are 906 suspected cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including 223 suspected deaths.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk on 29 May called for more robust measures by both states and tech companies to make online platforms safer for children, insisting on effective regulation, oversight and accountability. The digital world that connects children to learning, community and creativity also expose them to real risks, to their safety, to their privacy, and to their well-being. Online harms to kids’ safety, privacy, and well-being are not innate or inevitable.
See High Commissioner video: https://media.un.org/unifeed/en/asset/d357/d3579089
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
Gaza: Life-saving medicines blocked as killing continues, disease gains ground
In Gaza, a dire humanitarian situation marked by continuing violence, rodent infestations and the spread of diseases is being made worse by blockages of essential medical supplies, UN agencies warned on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights spokesperson Shabia Mantoo, warned against the continuing trend of involuntary returns of Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers from host countries to Afghanistan, in violation of international human rights and refugee law, at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | IFRC , OHCHR
Lebanon's first responders face high risks amid conflict, with 116 killed since March.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC Ebola outbreak: hundreds of suspected cases, no vaccine
A fast-spreading Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has health workers rushing to stop transmission while the roll out of any potential vaccine is months away, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
A UN Human Rights Office report released today covers 19 months of large-scale violations of international law including atrocity crimes, from October 2023 to the end of May 2025.