War a danger for whales in South African waters: Researchers

Rising Middle Eastern conflicts are driving more sea traffic near South African waters, heightening the risk of ship-to-whale collisions in critical habitats, according to researchers. South Africa’s southwestern coast supports globally significant populations of whales as well as increasingly busy shipping corridors, according to a research. Global sea traffic was diverted away from the Red Sea and around Southern Africa after the November 2023 hijacking by the Houthis of a British-owned vehicle carrier near Yemen.