"The escalating Israeli attacks on Lebanon did not only kill its civilians and destroy its infrastructure, but it is also annihilating the environment," warned the Green Line Association, a Lebanese NGO.

It said an air strike two weeks ago on Jiyeh power plant which serves southern Lebanon had resulted in a 15,000-ton oil spill.

"The power plant has six fuel tanks. Four of them have burnt completely, while the fifth one, which is also the main cause of the spill, is still burning," it warned.

The spill has hit more than 100 kilometres (60 miles) of the Lebanese coast from Jiyyeh to Shekka, north of the capital, including Beirut's only sandy public beach of Ramlet al-Baida, said Green Line.

"This is definitely one of the worst environmental crises in Lebanese history," it said in a joint statement with other environmental groups.

The NGOs warned that the marine environment, including the endangered green turtle -- not to mention the future tourism prospects of Lebanon -- would "suffer tremendously for several years from this spill".

"This oil spill is bigger than what the local authorities can handle and urgent help is needed from outside," they said, while adding that Israel's sustained air strikes were endangering those involved in clean-up operations.

The environment ministry, which has received a pledge from Kuwait to share its expertise in ecological crises built up after the 1991 Gulf War, said a complete oil-clean cleanup would cost tens of millions of dollars.

While residents of the Beirut area have been advised to steer clear of the Mediterranean waters, officials said Wednesday the ancient Phoenician port of Byblos had also been polluted by the oil slick.

Fishing boats at the port, north of Beirut, were surrounded by a large oil slick while nearby beaches were also covered by the sticky fluid, an AFP correspondent at the scene said.

The pollution, which has killed fish and much of the marine life in the area, threatens a wider ecological catastrophe, Environment Minister Yacub Sarraf has said.

Sarraf and residents said the slick was also caused by a leak from an Egyptian commercial boat which was hit by a missile off Beirut during the battles between Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah and Israeli forces.

An Egyptian sailor was killed when the boat was apparently hit by a Hezbollah missile, as it sailed close to Israeli naval vessels.

Four Israeli sailors were also killed when their warship, which was patrolling Lebanese waters as part of a massive air and sea blockade, was hit in the attack.

"The black slick appeared about seven or eight days ago and is becoming thicker by the day," Zalpha Sfeir, a resident of the picturesque resort town known for its Phoenician ruins and fish restaurants.

"It will take six months to clean up everything, when the boats which are off the coast will stop dumping all their toxic liquids," she said.

Officials in Lebanon's northern neighbour Syria issued a similar warning after a slick reached its shores.

"A black slick spread over 10 kilometres (six miles) appeared yesterday (Wednesday) on the Syrian coast," said Hassan Murjan, environment official for the southern port of Tartus.

"It's diesel from the electric power station or the boat that were attacked in Lebanon," he said, adding that tests were being done to determine where the oil came from.

The rocky nature of the coastline meant the pollution would have to be cleaned by hand "which will take some time", he said.

Israel launched a massive air, sea and ground offensive on Lebanon after Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers along the two countries' border on July 12 to secure a prisoner swap.

A flotilla of civilian and military boats have since been used to evacuate foreign nationals from the war-bruised country, many of them tourists who arrived on summer holidays before the crisis erupted.

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