Greenpeace says oil slick in Strait of Hormuz spreading rapidly

An oil slick in the Strait of Hormuz has roughly doubled in size within a day, the environmental organization Greenpeace said, adding that the pollution may have originated from a tanker recently attacked by the United States.

Satellite images showed the slick on the eastern side of the strategic waterway covering about 200 square kilometres on September 9 and around 400 square kilometres by September 10, Greenpeace said in a statement.

The environmental group said the crude oil tanker Riesco may be the source of the spill, as the vessel was last detected near the apparent origin of the pollution. No signal has been received from the tanker since then, Greenpeace said.

The spill is believed to have begun on the evening of September 8 or during the following night. Thermal signatures were detected at the time, according to the organization.

The US military has said it attacked the Riesco and other tankers linked to Iran.

Greenpeace warned that the environmental consequences could be particularly severe if the oil reaches the coastline. Since the start of the war with Iran, repeated attacks on oil tankers have caused several spills in the Strait of Hormuz, it said.

In August, oil was reported to have reached the shores of Iran's Qeshm Island, threatening sea turtle nesting sites and important fishing grounds.