Satellite pictures showing the rescue vessels NDEAVOR and NAUTICA (now renamed YEMEN) alongside or close to the FSO SAFER off the coast of Yemen, in the Red Sea, on the 19th and 20th of July 2023. This is the start of a United Nations-coordinated operation that should bring an end to an almost decade-long saga triggered by the outbreak of war in Yemen. The neglected FSO SAFER supertanker and its 1.1 million barrels of oil cargo have been a ticking time bomb since 2015, threatening a humanitarian, environmental and economic catastrophe for the communities and environment of the Red Sea.
Oil giants such as TotalEnergies, Exxon, OMV and Occidental have used the SAFER for decades and yet have not lifted a finger to help prevent a potentially massive oil spill in the Red Sea.