More than 30 dolphins have died since oil spill in Russia: Experts
Washington, Jan 5: Thirty-two dolphins have died since fuel oil spilled out of two storm-stricken tankers three weeks ago in the Kerch Strait, which separates the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula from Russia's southern Krasnodar region, an animal rescue group said Sunday.
Russia's Delfa Dolphin Rescue and Research Center said the deaths are “most likely related to the fuel oil spill”.
The centre said on the messaging app Telegram that a total of 61 dead cetaceans — an order of aquatic mammals that includes whales and dolphins — had been recorded since the emergency, but the condition of the bodies suggested that the 29 others had died before the spill.
“Judging by the condition of the bodies, most likely the majority of these cetaceans died in the first 10 days after the disaster. And now the sea continues to wash them up,” the centre wrote, noting that most of the dead dolphins were from the endangered Azov species.
Russia's Emergencies Ministry said on Sunday that over 96,000 tons of contaminated sand and soil had been removed by officials and volunteers along the shoreline of the Krasnodar region's Anapa and Temryuk districts.
Russia-appointed officials in Moscow-occupied Crimea announced a regional emergency on Saturday after oil was detected on the shores of Sevastopol, the peninsula's largest city some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Kerch Strait.
On December 23, the ministry estimated that up to 200,000 tons in total may have been contaminated with mazut, a heavy, low-quality oil product.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has called the oil spill an “ecological disaster”.
The Kerch Strait is an important global shipping route, providing passage from the inland Sea of Azov to the Black Sea.
It has also been a key point of conflict between Russia and Ukraine after Moscow annexed the peninsula in 2014. In 2016, Ukraine took Moscow to the Permanent Court of Arbitration, where it accused Russia of trying to seize control of the area illegally. In 2021, Russia closed the strait for several months.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office, described the oil spill last month as a “large-scale environmental disaster” and called for additional sanctions on Russian tankers.
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Modi diminishing BRICS+ presidency value to appease Trump, Netanyahu: Congress
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Monday lashed out at the government for not releasing a collective statement on the West Asia conflict as the BRICS+ chair, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi is "diminishing" the standing of the grouping's presidency in his desire to "appease" US President Donald Trump and maintain his "cozy relationship" with Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh recalled that Brazil was the President of BRICS+ in 2025 and it got the 11 member countries to issue a joint statement in June 2025 on the US and Israel air assaults on Iran.
"India is boasting of being the President of BRICS+ in 2026. But till now it has not summoned up the inclination or the courage to put out a collective statement on the US-Israel air offensives on and targeted assassinations in Iran, as well as on Iran's subsequent attacks on non-military targets in the GCC countries, and the shocking action of the US Navy in the Indian Ocean close to both Sri Lanka and India," Ramesh said on X.
"In his desire to appease President Trump and maintain his cozy relationship with Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Mr. Modi is diminishing the value and standing of the BRICS+ Presidency," the Congress leader said.
The Congress last week had attacked the Modi government for its "silence" on the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and said "a compromised prime minister no doubt wants to avoid antagonising his American and Israeli friend".
Ramesh had said India has rightly condemned Iran's attacks on Gulf states but is "completely quiet" on the US-Israeli assault on Iran in the first place.
The Congress has said the Opposition is demanding a discussion in both Houses of Parliament on the situation in West Asia and its impact on India, but the Modi government is "adamantly refusing" to allow such a debate as it is "afraid".
The opposition party also claimed that the government's foreign policy "already stands brutally exposed".
The Congress had staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha and protested in the Lok Sabha on being dissatisfied with the statement of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in both Houses of Parliament last Monday.
The party termed as "vapid" Jaishankar's statement on the West Asia situation in Parliament and alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign policy "(mis)adventurism", coupled with the government's "undermining" of the Indian Foreign Service, is pushing India into "vassalage".
The US and Israel launched a major military attack on Iran on February 28, killing Khamenei.
Making a suo-motu statement in Parliament, Jaishankar had said New Delhi stood for maintaining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states in the region. He defended allowing the Iranian ship to dock at an Indian port as the right decision taken on humanitarian grounds.
He said the Indian government had been constantly monitoring the evolving situation in the region at the highest level and had already brought back 67,000 stranded Indians from the conflict zone.
Jaishankar said the safety of Indian nationals and national interests, such as energy security and trade, remain the topmost priority for the government.
