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29 March 2024

Dead tortoises left to rot on Saudi beach

Dead tortoises left to rot on Saudi beach

Published
By Staff

Curious Saudi beach strollers attracted by strong stench stumbled across bones and other remains of 17 dead tortoises that were left to decompose on Gulf Kingdom’s eastern coast after they washed ashore last week.

“Nearly a week after their corpses washed ashore, the dead tortoises are still scattered on the sand, sending a strong bad smell and threatening to cause an environmental problem,” the Saudi Arabic language daily Alyoum said Saturday.

“The authorities have not bothered bury these dead tortoises as they have decomposed on the sand and only their bones and shells are left.”

In its report last week, Alyoum said oil pollution caused by terminal and tanker leakages apparently killed the 17 tortoises which were found by swimmers on the beach in the eastern industrial port of Jubail.

The tortoises ranged between 150 and 50 centimetres long and were found lying within a few metres from each other, it said.

Scores of tortoises, turtles, dolphins and other fish have been found dead in that area over the past few months because of heavy pollution.

“We have reported this incident to the competent authorities…our role is to report incidents involving dead fish and other sea creatures or oil slicks,” said Colonel Mohammed Al Ghamdi, coast guard spokesman in the Eastern province.