Israel shuts Mediterranean shore after oil spill devastates coast

Activists reported globs of black tar on Israel’s coast last week after a heavy storm, wreaking havoc on local wildlife.

Israel closed all its Mediterranean beaches until further notice on Sunday, days after an offshore oil spill deposited tonnes of tar across more than 160km (100 miles) of coastline in what officials are calling one of the country’s worst ecological disasters. Activists began reporting globs of black tar on Israel’s coast last week after a heavy storm. The deposits have wreaked havoc on local wildlife, and the Israeli Agriculture Ministry determined on Sunday that a dead young fin whale that washed up on a beach in southern Israel died from ingesting the viscous black liquid, according to Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster.