Why an oil deal endangers prized corals off Israeli coast
EILAT, ISRAEL: The Red Sea reefs off the Israeli resort of Eilat host some of the greatest coral diversity on the planet.
They have also become an unlikely battleground, caught between Israeli diplomatic and business interests, and ecological groups that fear this natural treasure could be in danger.
A clandestine oil deal struck last year as part of the historic agreement establishing formal diplomatic ties between Israel and the UAE is turning Eilat into a waypoint for Emirati oil headed for Western markets.
Initially hailed as a move that could cement fledgling diplomatic ties and further Israel’s now in question after Israel’s new government opened a review. The decision has upset investors and risks a diplomatic spat with Israel’s Gulf allies.
The UAE and Israel, which normalised relations last year as part of the US-brokered Abraham Accords, have since signed over $830 million in trade deals agreements.
But the deal between the Europe-Asia Pipeline Company, an Israeli government-owned corporation, and MED-RED Land Bridge, a joint Israel-Emirati venture, remains a secret.
Senior officials in former PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s government - including his former energy, foreign and environment ministers - said they didn’t know about the deal until it was after the accords were signed at the White House.
The pipeline company, known as EAPC, was founded in the 1960s to bring Iranian oil to Israel when the countries had friendly relations. Its operations are shrouded in secrecy, ostensibly for security reasons.
Israeli environmental groups have asked the Supreme Court to halt oil shipments, citing EAPC’s questionable safety record and the risk posed by parking supertankers alongside Eilat’s fragile coral ecosystems.
As for an oil spill, it’s “not a question of if it will happen, but when it will happen”, said Assaf Zvuloni, a nature and parks authority ecologist in Eilat. Even a small rupture or human error would have disastrous conse