A second suspected oil slick has been detected near Iran’s Kharg Island export hub, according to maritime intelligence firm Windward AI, heightening fears of an environmental disaster as a larger spill identified May 8 continues drifting toward Saudi Arabian waters.

The suspected new slick comes as U.N. officials warned Sunday that oil spills in the region could trigger an environmental catastrophe amid the ongoing Strait of Hormuz crisis.

"Another possible oil spill was detected today at 11 a.m. local time," Windward told Fox News Digital. The approximate visible area, according to the firm, was between 12 to 20 square kilometers.

Tehran has pointed to foreign vessels, but maritime experts say the main slick — estimated at tens of thousands of barrels and covering about 65 square kilometers, according to the U.N. University Institute for Water, Environment and Health — is more likely linked to aging infrastructure, pipeline ruptures or a "war mode" environment that has threatened the waterway since February.

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"We should worry about the cause of the slick and monitor things carefully to see if there are new developments," U.N. official Dr. Kaveh Madani told Fox News Digital.

"If this slick gets bigger, we should be seriously worried about there being a leakage of aging infrastructure," Madani said, adding the slick was "moving away toward the southwest of the island."

"We just have to see how it moves and if it gets closer to the centers of population. If it does, desalination operations also must be halted. The risk is low right now," he said.

Madani also noted the slick is near a zone with a heavy concentration of pipelines and energy infrastructure.

"Keeping these infrastructure systems healthy and operational has been very hard for the Iranians even in peacetime due to sanctions," he said, warning that amid conflict, a "major accident is very likely."

Water circulation in the Persian Gulf is slow, meaning pollution can persist for extended periods, he added.

"We saw similar instances during the Gulf wars and the Iran-Iraq War, with these things impacting coastal communities, the fishing industry, marine life and even the intake of desalination plants," he said.

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The larger spill, visible in satellite images as a gray-and-white slick, was first detected west of Kharg Island, Windward AI reported May 8, and has been steadily moving.

"It is believed to be crude rather than bunker fuel and unlikely to have come from a ship, possibly originating from pipeline issues or a failed ship-to-ship transfer," the firm said.

The spill could pass through Qatar’s exclusive economic zone within about four days, with possible landfall near Al Mirfa in the United Arab Emirates in roughly 13 days, according to Windward.

The incident comes as Washington ramps up "Economic Fury," tightening sanctions and increasing its naval presence near the Strait of Hormuz to curb Iran’s oil exports.

Since Iran closed the strait in late February following the outbreak of hostilities, tankers have bottlenecked across the region as the vital oil chokepoint remains largely shut.

"We also know that there are many tankers in the area, so there is a chance of an accidental spill," Madani said.

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"As long as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is there and the region is in a war mode, the environment would not be a priority, but monitoring the behavior of tankers would not be trivial," he said.

Meanwhile, Jafar Pourkabgani, a lawmaker representing Bushehr province, claimed the slick was caused by "oil residue and ballast water waste from European tankers" discharged into the sea.

"This claim is false and part of the enemy’s psychological operation," he wrote on X, referring to allegations Iran released oil due to full storage tanks.

Iran’s Oil Terminals Company also denied reports of a leak near Kharg Island, according to Reuters.

The company’s chief executive said Sunday that inspections found no evidence of leaks from storage tanks, pipelines, loading facilities or nearby tankers.

Three people are dead and five others were injured Friday when Mount Dukono erupted on a remote Indonesian island, where the hikers were in a restricted area, authorities said.

About 20 climbers set out Thursday to climb the nearly 1,355-meter (4,445-foot) volcano in Halmahera, Indonesia, despite safety restrictions, North Halmahera Police Chief Erlichson Pasaribu said.

"They were aware that climbing was prohibited as the mountain is a restricted zone due to its high alert status but insisted on going ahead," Pasaribu said.

Despite warnings on social media and signs at the site, "many people remain determined to climb, driven by the desire to create online content," Pasaribu said.

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Pasaribu said three people, including one local resident and two Singaporeans, were killed in the eruption. The Indonesian victim was from Ternate, which is in the same province as Mount Dukono.

The three victims' bodies remain on the volcano, with ongoing eruptions and difficult terrain preventing them from being evacuated by rescue teams, Pasaribu said.

The group became stranded when the volcano erupted at 7:41 a.m., sending a column of ash over 6 miles into the sky.

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Rescue teams were deployed after receiving an emergency signal from the mountain area.

As of Friday afternoon, 17 climbers had been safely evacuated, including seven Singaporean nationals and two Indonesians who joined the rescue operation and provided information on the climbing routes of the victims before the eruption, National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said.

Five of those evacuated were reported injured.

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Pasaribu said police will question those who joined the hikers up the mountain. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Indonesian National Police for additional information.

According to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program, Mount Dukono has been continuously erupting since 1933.

"Friday’s eruption was among the strongest during this period," said Lana Saria, who heads Indonesia’s Geology Agency at the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Amsterdam has reportedly become the first capital city in the world to ban public ads for meat and fossil fuels — wiping burgers, gas-powered cars, and airline promotions from billboards, tram stops and metro stations.

Since May 1, the Dutch capital and tourist hotspot’s advertising landscape has undergone a dramatic shift. Ads once showcasing chicken nuggets, SUVs, and budget flights have been replaced with promotions for museums and concerts, according to BBC News.

Local politicians say the sweeping move is part of an aggressive climate agenda, with goals to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and cut meat consumption in half, the outlet reported.

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"The climate crisis is very urgent," Anneke Veenhoff from the GreenLeft Party said. "I mean, if you want to be leading in climate policies and you rent out your walls to exactly the opposite, then what are you doing?"

But critics argue the policy crosses a line — calling it an overreach that attempts to engineer personal choices, according to BBC News.

The Dutch Meat Association blasted the ban as "an undesirable way to influence consumer behavior," warning that meat provides essential nutrients and should remain visible and accessible, the outlet reported.

Meanwhile, travel industry leaders say the restrictions unfairly target businesses. 

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The Dutch Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators called the ban on airline advertising a disproportionate blow to commercial freedom, according to BBC News.

Supporters, however, are framing the policy as a broader cultural shift — even comparing meat ads to cigarette campaigns of decades past.

"Because if I look now back at like old pictures, you have Johan Cruyff," Hannah Prins, a paralegal at Advocates for the Future, told the outlet. "The famous Dutch footballer. … He would be in advertisements for tobacco. That used to be normal. He died of lung cancer."

Prins added, "I don't think it's normal to see murdered animals on billboards. So I think it's very good that that's going to change."

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Other Dutch cities — including Haarlem, Utrecht and Nijmegen — have rolled out similar restrictions, while cities across Europe continue pushing to curb fossil fuel advertising, BBC News reported.

Meanwhile, in the United States, federal officials have taken a markedly different approach to food policy. 

The Department of Health and Human Services earlier this year unveiled updated dietary guidance featuring an inverted food pyramid. The top of the pyramid, now the wider part of the structure, is built on meat, fats, fruits and vegetables, while whole grains are at the narrow bottom.

Fox News Digital's Angelica Stabile contributed to this report.