Stranded Morocco Tankship Salvage Underway

Morocco has launched an operation to empty the Iranian-owned oil tanker 'Kharg 5' that ran aground during a storm near the southern port of Tan Tan with 5,000 tonnes of fuel on board, reports Arabiya News via AFP.

The fuel was being pumped into trucks, with the operation expected to last between five and seven days depending on the weather reports Arabiya News citing official sources.

The ship was on a voyage from the Canary Islands when it ran aground last week, with heavy waves dragging it towards a rocky area, sparking fears of an oil slick on Morocco's Atlantic coast, however no major oil leaks have been reported.

The oil was for delivery to a power station in Tan Tan, on the Mediterranean Sea coast which lies close to the Western Sahara, around 300 kilometres (190 miles) south of the Moroccan resort town of Agadir.

Source: Arabiya News/AFP