Lebanon to seek Israel compensation over oil slick

[Scurrilous]

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"Lebanon is planning legal action against Israel for an oil slick caused by its bombing of a power station that has polluted large areas of the Lebanese coast, a minister has told AFP.

Lebanese Environment Minister Yacoub Sarraf said his government would seek damages under a statute of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The legal clause states that "an intentional attack with the certainty that this attack will create widespread environmental damage in the long-run can constitute a war crime".

The Israeli military bombed Lebanon's southern Jiyeh power plant in mid-July during its 34-day offensive against Hezbollah militants, unleashing thousands of tonnes of fuel oil into the Mediterranean Sea.

"The bombardment caused a lot of long-term damage because layers of oil settled on the sea bed" or drifted below the surface, Sarraf said in an interview."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060911/wl_mideast_afp/mideastconflictlebanonisraelenvironment_060911122912