Yemen's Ansarullah Agrees to Give UN Access to Abandoned Tanker: Sources
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement has agreed to provide the United Nations access to a stranded oil tanker that risks causing an environmental disaster off the coast of the Arab country, two UN sources familiar with the matter said.
The UN earlier this week said it was extremely concerned after water entered the engine room of Safer tanker, which carries 1.1 million barrels of crude oil and has been stranded off the Red Sea oil terminal of Ras Issa for over five years.
The sources said that Ansarullah, which controls the port, sent a letter approving the deployment of a UN technical team to the tanker, Reuters reported.
The United Nations is also discussing with Yemen's warring parties about arranging the sale of the crude and dividing proceeds between the ex-government and the Houthi Ansarullah movement.
The UN Security Council is scheduled to hold a meeting Wednesday to discuss the Safer tanker issue which has been mired in disputes over control of ports and revenues.
Yemen's oil output has collapsed since a Saudi-led coalition launched military aggression against the country in March 2015. The Saudi war has killed more than 100,000 people and caused what the UN describes as the world's largest humanitarian crisis.
