Red Sea: Microplastics Found in Guts of One-in-Six Fish Despite Status As World's Least Polluted Water

Pictured is a microscopic image of the stomach of a Red Sea fish captured as part of a separate study into plastic pollution. A tiny piece of plastic (blue) can be seen towards the bottom of the picture, which was captured in 2017
Pictured is a microscopic image of the stomach of a Red Sea fish captured as part of a separate study into plastic pollution. A tiny piece of plastic (blue) can be seen towards the bottom of the picture, which was captured in 2017
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Red Sea: Microplastics Found in Guts of One-in-Six Fish Despite Status As World's Least Polluted Water

Pictured is a microscopic image of the stomach of a Red Sea fish captured as part of a separate study into plastic pollution. A tiny piece of plastic (blue) can be seen towards the bottom of the picture, which was captured in 2017
Pictured is a microscopic image of the stomach of a Red Sea fish captured as part of a separate study into plastic pollution. A tiny piece of plastic (blue) can be seen towards the bottom of the picture, which was captured in 2017

Microplastics have been found in the guts of one-in-six fish in the Red Sea, shattering its status as the world's least plastic-polluted body of water, according to a new study published by Daily Mail.

The study means that Red Sea fish are ingesting as much plastic as those in other seas across the globe, where levels of the floating waste are far higher.

It spells trouble for people who eat fish from the region, as the microplastics are likely to get into their diet, scientists said.

The tiny fragments, which contaminate oceans when larger pieces of plastic break down, are known to pass down the food chain, potentially causing organ damage.

Researchers at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia collected 178 fish belonging to 26 species from four Red Sea habitats.

Examination of their gut contents showed that one in every six fish had ingested small pieces of plastic.

This is similar to findings from other parts of the globe, despite research reporting that the Red Sea has the lowest amount of floating microplastics in seas worldwide.

Many of the pieces found came from synthetic clothing that had been washed in a washing machine.

The tiny fragments of waste then pass through the sewage system, where they are eventually dumped into the sea.

'The major finding of this study is that microplastic pollution has reached our commercial and non-commercial fish species and might contaminate the fish we consume,' said study coauthor Fadiyah Baalkhuyur.

'The surprising finding was the amount of ingested fibers originating from the degradation of plastic debris, such as those from packaging materials and from washing synthetic clothing.

'This might suggest that these fibers are spread out in all the marine habitats and might become a significant source of marine pollution in the Red Sea.'

As much as 80 percent of plastic litter found in the oceans comes from land-based activities.

Once plastics enter the ocean, they are dispersed by currents or sink to the seafloor, slowly breaking down into smaller components.

Microplastics are pieces that are smaller than five millimeters.

They are often ingested by marine life because they are similar in size to the prey of a large number of marine organisms.

They can block or injure an animal's digestive tract and can also have toxic effects when hazardous components leach into the surrounding tissues.

Fish could prove to be a major sink for the large amount of plastics that we use and throw away on a daily basis.

Researchers said they are now setting up an experimental design to examine the process of microplastic uptake by fish under laboratory conditions.



28 Palestinians Including Children Killed in Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza

Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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28 Palestinians Including Children Killed in Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza

Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Palestinians inspect the destruction at a makeshift displacement camp following a reported incursion a day earlier by Israeli tanks in the area in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on July 11, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 28 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, including four children, hospital officials said Saturday.

The children and two women were among at least 13 people who were killed in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, after Israeli airstrikes pounded the area starting late Friday, officials in Al-Aqsa Martyr's Hospital said. Another four people were killed in strikes near a fuel station, and 15 others died in Israeli airstrikes in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, according to Nasser Hospital.

The Israeli military said in a statement that over the past 48 hours, troops struck approximately 250 targets in the Gaza Strip, including militants, booby-trapped structures, weapons storage facilities, anti-tank missile launch posts, sniper posts, tunnels and additional Hamas infrastructure sites. The military did not immediately respond to The Associated Press' request for comment on the civilian deaths.

The Hamas-led group killed some 1,200 people in their Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and abducted 251. They still hold 50 hostages, less than half of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s offensive has killed over 57,000 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which is under Gaza’s Hamas-run government, doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count. The UN and other international organizations see its figures as the most reliable statistics on war casualties.

US President Donald Trump has said that he is closing in on another ceasefire agreement that would see more hostages released and potentially wind down the war. But after two days of talks this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu there were no signs of a breakthrough.