The UN 'urgently' needs $144 million to respond to the oil tanker which is floating off the coast of Yemen and which the organisation says is a 'time bomb' and could worsen the country's already dire humanitarian situation.

In a statement, the UN said: '$80 million is urgently needed to implement the emergency operation to eliminate the immediate threat and transfer oil from aboard the Safer tanker to a safe temporary vessel during the summer between June and September. By the beginning of October, high winds and choppy currents will make the rescue operation more dangerous and increase the possibility of a shipwreck.'

The UN Sustainable Development Group said the Netherlands will host a pledging conference in the first half of May to help raise funds for the project.

The Safer oil tanker, which was built in Japan during the 1970s, is carrying 1.1 million barrels of crude oil, and has been anchored off the marine terminal of Ras Isa, on the shores of the Red Sea, since 2015.

middleeastmonitor