Activists clean up beach allegedly hit by oil spill in Gulf of Mexico

Activists and local fishing communities clean Lerma beach in the Gulf of Mexico, where dark stains are visible in the water. Several NGOs attribute the phenomenon to an oil spill, allegations denied by Mexico's state oil company Pemex, who put the stains down to "natural" causes. Pemex, in a statement, acknowledged there was a leak but the company said the volume of hydrocarbons that escaped was minimal.

The spill was reported to the government and Navy for repairs and most of the spilled volume was recovered immediately," said the company. Several NGOs, including Greenpeace, have denounced an oil spill that on 12 July covered some 400 square kilometers.