Back in the early '90s, the media used the word "eco-terror" to refer to acts of war against the planet (not sabotage in defense of it, as they do today). One example was Saddam Hussein's dumping of millions of gallons of oil into the Persian Gulf at Al Hamaji in retaliation for U.S. air attacks. "Ecoterror" also describes pretty well the consequences of last month's Israeli attack on a Lebanese power station. As "Democracy Now!" reported one morning last week:
Since then around 15,000 tons of oil have leaked into the Mediterranean Sea. Satellite images show the spill has already reached as far as north as Syria. 70 miles of coastline have already been polluted. Environmentalists fear the spill could also end up affecting Cyprus, Turkey and Greece.
Friends of the Earth has said that the spill -- which is spreading unchecked due to Israeli blockades -- "threatens to be the greatest environmental disaster ever in the Eastern Mediterranean." And according to Wael Hmaidan, coordinator of the Oil Spill Working Group:
al devastation of our marine environment. The oil spill, which has happened more than three weeks ago, it is -- no one has started the cleanup process yet. It has spread over 100 kilometers of Lebanese coastline. It has reached Syria, contaminated several kilometers in Syria, and there is the possibility it will reach Turkey or Greece.
Massive die-offs of fish and birds have already begun to happen. Other sources are reporting possible increased cancer risks in Mediterranean countries due to the spill.
Most recent update here.
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