The ship headed from Equatorial Guinea to Malta sank on Friday and the Tunisian navy rescued all seven crew members. read more
The vessel was carrying between 750 tonnes and 1,000 tonnes of fuel and sent an emergency call seven miles from Gabes, to which the Tunisian navy responded, officials said.
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The Ministry of Defense said in a statement sent to Reuters that the Tunisian navy will work with countries that have expressed their desire to help to control the environmental damage.
The commercial merchant ship that sank off the coast of Gabes in Tunisia on 15 April 2022 shows this brochure photo taken in Rostov-on-Don, Russia on 12 November 2017. Dmitry Frolov / Brochure via REUTERS
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Local media reported that Italy had offered to help and that it was expected to send a warship specializing in dealing with maritime disasters.
On Saturday, the Tunisian authorities launched an investigation into the sinking of the ship, which according to the Ministry of Environment was caused by bad weather.
He said dams would be set up to limit the spread of fuel and blockage from the ship before the leak was aspirated.
The coast of the southern city of Gabes has been heavily polluted for years, with environmental groups saying industrial plants in the area are dumping waste directly into the sea.
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Report by Tarek Amara? Edited by Muralikumar Anantharaman
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